The Grand March
by green wings in the sky
Summary: AU. A new force finds its way into the world of Remnant, The Paladin Order. The Paladins now seek to gain a foothold in Remnant in exchange for lending military aid; and if that wasn't ominous enough, romantic interests complicate things. Currently Undergoing Rewrite.
1. A Prelude, of Sorts

I sat in our room, perusing one of our school books. Another test was looming and naturally I was looking to pass it. The door of our room burst forward, and Ruby charged in.

"Weiss there you are," she panted. "Have you been in here all day?"

"Obviously Ruby," I told her. "How else do you expect to pass our next test?"

"Come on Weiss," she said, pulling me up by arm. "All you do is stay in your room and study." I pulled my arm away from her. "And when you do leave you head to the training field."

"Well, I guess I could take a break," I sighed, setting down the book. She grabbed my hand.

"Great! Let's go!" she yelled pulling me along.

"Wait! Hey, I'm not ready," I screamed at her. "Where are we going?"

"In town of course," she said. I rolled my eyes and played along.

We made it into town and walked along the closed storefronts. They were decorated in gold and silver garlands, red and green lights, and tons of pine branches and wreaths.

"It looks so beautiful Weiss," Ruby said, her hands clasped together.

"Yeah, Christmas is nice," I replied. "Shame it's so late. I would have loved to do some shopping."

"Hey," she said turning in front of me. "I have to go get something, you mind waiting?"

"No, go ahead," I answered. She smiled and ran off. I kept on walking through the streets, the lights blurring into stars in the distance. I lost track of time, and somehow found myself down by the lake. I walked over to the dock, and leaned on the railing. I looked out on the lake, the shattered moon reflected in the still water. It was a serene peace, a peace I could only find in this locale.

"I knew you would be here," I heard. I looked over to my left, Ruby standing there. "This is your favorite place."

"Sorry about dropping out like that," I said. She walked over to my side.

"It's okay," she said. "I kinda wanted to see the lake too."

"It's very calm and pretty, the moon," I said. "Just sitting there, contemplating. Looking to see what happens."

"Sounds familiar to me," Ruby said.

"What do you mean?" I asked her. I could see her inch towards me, although she tried to hide it.

"A person just standing there, unassuming," she said. "waiting for the moment to strike." She lunged at my waist, wrapping her arms around me and burrowing her face into my shoulder. She laughed. "You're cute when you're quiet Weiss." I snickered and wrapped my arm around her waist. Slowly, small dots of white fell from the sky, the downfall slowly growing. Ruby lunged forward.

"Oh my god Weiss, it's snowing!" she screamed, jumping up and down. "You know what that means?" she asked.

"No I don't," I answered.

"It means tomorrow we can make snowmen, snow angels have snowball fights," she screamed. "It's gonna be a snow day!"

"It would have to snow pretty hard for that," I replied. She just laughed and shrugged it off.

"Also Weiss," she said. "You know that thing I told you I had to go get?"

"Yeah, what about it?" I asked.

"Well halfway through I kinda forgot what I was going to get, and so I just got lost trying to find you," she said rubbing the back of her head. She was always a bit of a ditz. "But I did find something to occupy us for tonight." She said, pulling something out of her cloak. She held up a bottle filled with gold liquid on one hand and green bottle in the other.

"Is that, alcohol?" I asked.

"Yeah," she replied. "I never got to try the stuff, but my Uncle Qrow was always drinking it. Found a couple of bottles. So how about we head on back and have a taste test?" she asked with a sly look on her face.

I could hear ringing. Not from my alarm clock though. I haggardly tried to roll out of bed, but an arm latched itself around my waist. Ruby laid on my right side, nuzzling into my shoulder. Her breath was light and marked with small snores. I raised my arm, passing my fingers through her red tipped black hair. All at once, I was hit with the massive need to pee. I lifted her arm, and quickly slid out of bed. As I rushed out the world began to wobble. I staggered myself and slowly made my way to the bathroom so I wouldn't pass out on the ground. I threw the door open and slipped my panties off my legs, and slumped on the toilet, finally able to relive myself. I leaned back, trying to recollect what happened the night before. I rubbed my temples, my head pounding. God, what happened? Ruby and I got back with the booze and then, nothing. Is this blacking out? A rasping knock echoed through the room. When I rushed into the bathroom, I had neglected to close the door. I hit the lever on the toilet and slugged out. Thank god Ruby is passed out, that would have been a horrible scene. I found my way to the door and haggardly pulled it open, bottles clanking as they rolled against the door. A tall man stood in the doorway, bearing a tabard with the image of a Cross against a golden starburst, resting on a brown background. His arms and legs showed off the red and yellow armor that gleamed with light, blinding me. I rubbed my eyes, my head aching from the reflection.

"Let me guess, first drink?" the figure asked.

"God damn it Mikal just leave," I croaked out, slamming the door. The door stopped just short a few inches, his foot blocking the door. He forced his way in, easily overpowering me.

"I am a Paladin," he said closing the door behind him. "But I am not Mikal. I am merely an envoy on of my dimension hopping master." His foot grazed a bottle and he picked it up. "Cuervo, that explains a lot." He shook the bottle, a look of surprise on his face. "Did you drink the whole bottle?" I racked my mind for some memory of the last night.

"I think it was half empty when she found it," I said, wearily putting memory cues together.

"Still, cactus juice," he said passing his feet through the bottles. "And apparently, vodka, whisky, and gin." He picked up each bottle. "Smirnoff, Tennessee, and Old Tom. Damn, she found the good stuff." He walked around the room, making his way to my bed. "You know the incredible thing is, I smell a rather distinct lack of puke. That is fucking incredible. For first timers you are incredibly tolerant." As he got to the bed, Ruby roused from her sleep, a horrid moan passing out of her mouth.

"Weiss," she moaned. Her face had turned sour and she leapt out of bed and straight into the bathroom within a second. Another second and the sound of heaves filled the room.

"Well that's one way to use semblance," he said. I strained my eyes on him, the light reflected off him irritating the back of my eyes.

"Who are you?" I demanded of him.

"I am Benjamin, Holy Paladin of the Order, and I was sent here to check on you two," he announced. "And it seems I have arrived a little late." A flush came from the bathroom, and Ruby hobbled out, exhausted. She shambled over to us and leaned on my shoulder.

"Weiss," she moaned. "My head hurts. Make it stop."

"The Hangover, God's way of saying you made a poor ass decision," Ben said. I shot him a dirty look. "Come on, you two are far too young to be drinking." I scowled at him, but my head would not relent from pain. Ruby shifted her weight off me, and a piece of cloth fell through her figners.

"Hey Weiss, I found these on the floor in the bathroom," she said holding out her hand. I stood horrified as she tried to hand me the pair of panties I had tossed to the ground. Ben just stared deadpan, and pushed Ruby's arm down. I quickly grabbed them, frozen with embarrassment.

"Okay Ruby, for future reference," he explained. "I know you're trying to be helpful and all, but in the future it would be best to not try and return your girlfriend's panties in front of anybody else, let alone a Paladin." She blushed and hid the underwear behind her back. "In any other circumstance I would probably punch you in the cunt," he explained. "but from what I observe it seems that has already occurred. Several times." I stood, jaw dropped. He smirked, "Oh yeah, just because your brain didn't record anything doesn't mean there ain't anything there. There's a little bit there Veiss," he said.

"My name is Weiss," I screamed at him.

"Not in German it's not" he said. I wobbled around, unable to stand. I lost my balance and fell over, only for him to catch me. "All right both of you sit down." He said guiding Ruby by her shoulder. Ruby fell on the bed, sitting back up, and Ben slowly set me down. He pulled out a pair of sports drinks. "Drink these, slowly," he emphasized. I pried the lid off and sipped at the sweet and salty liquid. He pulled out a small bottle and shook out two pills.

"Should help with the headaches," he said holding out his hand. We each grabbed one and quickly swallowed them down. He stood up and walked over to the door. "All right, keep tight. I'm gonna get something fill you to up." He stepped out, quietly shutting the door behind him.

"How you feeling Ruby?" I asked her.

"My head hurts, and I feel dizzy," she said. "But I'm feeling better." I smiled and took another sip at the sports drink. I replaced the cap and set it down on the floor, while Ruby chugged hers down, desperate for something to drink. My head suddenly burned, an image flashing in my mind. "Weiss, are you okay?" Ruby asked me, hand on my shoulder.

"I'm fine," I choked out. The image flashed again, and it was more vivid. I saw pale skin, a small body, and a pair of exposed breasts. The image fizzled out, Ruby taking its place. My eyes widened, and my memory returned. "Ruby, do you remember anything from last night?"

"No, I don't," she said. "I just started drinking that strawberry stuff, and then I woke up puking in a toilet."

"I guess you drank more than me," I said. I noticed her hair pressed against the left side of her face. I reached out, straightening her hair out. She looked me in the eye, and my face fell. "Ruby," I sighed. "I think, I think we may have done something last night."

"Well yeah," she said innocently. I stared at her. "Besides drinking, what?"

"Ruby, I think," I tried to say, the images flooding into my mind, her breasts exposed, holes torn in her tights. "I think we had sex last night." I choked out.

"What?" she asked, yet again innocently. I looked her in the eye, and slowly her cheery face dropped. "What do you mean Weiss?"

"I mean," I choked out. "I think when we got drunk; I took advantage of the situation and forced myself on you. I mean, I don't remember any resistance but."

"But nothing then," Ruby said. "If I didn't resist then no harm no foul."

"I can't believe you're talking like that!" I screamed jumping on her. "it's hardly nothing. I just took something even though I had no idea what you wanted. It is horrible, I am a horrible person." I slumped back on the bed, my hands in my face, tears emptying out of my eyes.

"Weiss," Ruby said calmly. I looked up, and saw through my blurred vision Ruby leaning in to hug me. "Do you want to know something?" she smiled. "To tell the truth, I would be far angrier in this situation if it were some guy but." She leaned back as I kept bawling like a child. She brushed the tears from my face, my nose catching her scent. "You were drunk too Weiss, you had no way of controlling yourself," she reassured me. I threw myself into her arms, crying out. "Weiss, I'm okay."

"But Ruby," I bawled. "I raped you, I just kept going. I can remember it, I just kept going. I raped my friend." She moved her hand to my face, holding me back. "Ruby?"

"You're wrong Weiss," she said. She leaned in, and touched her lips to mine. My heart rushed and tears came out again, overwhelming me. She broke the kiss, her bloodshot eyes shining in the light. "I wouldn't have wanted to do it with anyone else. I love you Weiss."

"But I, I don't understand," I told her. "We're both girls."

"Yeah that's kinda strange to me too," she said. "I mean i'm into guys but, there's something about you Weiss. Something different. Not because you're a girl, but because you're Weiss." She made a wide toothed grin. "The only thing I'm mad about is that I don't remember our first time."

"But what," I said. "what if I don't feel the same way?"

"Doesn't mean I'll stop loving you Weiss," she said. "I mean in _that_ way, I mean in any way but not that way either," she rambled on. And suddenly, my heart felt lighter, and a grin made its way onto my face, my chest began to jump, and I couldn't stop the laughter that began to bellow out of my gut.

"Oh my god, I can't believe I didn't see it before," I laughed. "It was so obvious. The way you leaned in at the lake, the hugging, the rubbing your head into me; I knew I should have trusted my gut."

"Well Weiss?" Ruby asked.

"Oh, I," I said. "I, I don't know how to feel about it." I told myself to say no, but for some reason, my gut wouldn't listen. "But at the same time, I'm not against it. I guess, we could try, experiment." She squeed, and threw her arms around me, throwing me on the bed. She loomed over me, her arms on either side of me. My eyes locked with hers, and my heart pounded as she leaned in to give me a second kiss.

"Ehem," I heard spoken from the doorway. Ruby and I broke our gaze and looked over at the door, Ben standing in the doorway hold a paper bag, filled with what I assume was our meal. We kept in position, still staring. "You know, by this point, anybody in your position would be on the ground sprawling in pain," he said setting the bag down on the night stand. "Or does this cross on chest mean nothing to you? Just like everybody else?" Ruby slipped off me and I sat up.

"Well Mikal did a poor job of explaining it," I told him. He grabbed the bag and pulled out its contents, a pair of, something that was wrapped. He handed them to us. I passed it over in my hands, wondering what it was, while Ruby tore into hers.

"It's called a burrito," he said. "Mexican fare." I slowly unwrapped the paper, revealing a white and brown loaf of some sort. He pulled out a third from the bag, and unwrapped it. "Ground beef, seasoned with spices such as cumin, turmeric, with sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, what have you." He took a large bite out of his and I looked over to Ruby who had done to same. I sighed and took a bite of mine, and the flavor rushed my senses. It was crisp, spicy, and sweet all at once, and with one bite I already felt satisfied without even swallowing. I looked back over to Ruby, who was taking another bite. As she chewed, I noticed some of the filling had gotten on her cheek.

"Ruby," I said. She looked over at me. "You got something on your cheek." I said pointing to my left cheek. She rubbed her arm against her right cheek.

"Did I get it?" she asked, the filling now spread over more of her cheek. I smiled and pulled out my handkerchief to wipe it off. Out of nowhere, a cloth hit Ruby in the face, covering most of it.

"Clean yourself up," Ben said. My eyes shot over to him. "No reason to be messy." Ruby pulled the paisley blue cloth off her face, taking the mess off with it.

"You are incredibly rude you know that?" I told him.

"Honey, no way I'm leaving you two alone together," he said. "Not after that little scene I saw."

"And what is so wrong with that?" I asked him. He stared at me straight faced.

"You serious?" he asked me. "Do you seriously not know who or what a paladin is, or represents?" He pointed to the cross on his chest.

"From what I've heard, you are all just a group of bigots justifying being cruel," I told him.

"News media are rather polarized today," he said calmly. "always looking for some controversy, not looking at the truth or the intent.

"And what is the truth and intent?" I asked him.

"You know I could stand here and prattle on for five hours about every aspect of that loaded question, but nobody has any time for that," he said. "To put it simply and as short as I can: We serve God, They do not. We work to serve God, They work to defy Him. We believe the Bible to be the Word of God, They do not."

"Sounds a lot like you're with us or you're against us," Ruby said.

"Exactly," he said. "If God is for us then who can stand against us? If the world hates you, know that it hated Me first; A servant is no greater than his Master."

"All you Paladins do is quote that book," I replied.

"That book is our Faith," he replied sternly. "Like I said, the Word of God. It is our Faith, our identity. Do not call our path foolish and then go and put undying faith into the path of the world, for that is the same thing, but with a different master. Man must serve something."

"That is incredibly dark," Ruby replied.

"It is a shame you cannot see the world as we do," he said sullen. "but I cannot expect those not in Christ to see as we do."

"And what would you do to make us see the way you do?" I asked him.

"I cannot force you to believe something you do not believe," he said. "you cannot force faith. Faith only comes from a decision to follow. Your faith must be your own or else it is not true faith."

"So you have no problem with us not believing the same thing as you?" I replied.

"I would love it if you would, but there would be no way to tell if it was genuine," he said. "And even God would prefer you to have no faith then to have ingenuine faith."

"Hey Ruby, Weiss we're back!" Yang screamed as she burst into the room, Black following behind. She turned to Ben. "Who are you?" She asked him.

"My name is Benjamin," he replied. "And I believe that this is the sign that this conversation is over. Good Bye," he said bowing. He passed out of the open doorway and past Blake.

"Hey, what conversation?" Yang yelled after him. "What were you talking about?"

"Already explained it, not repeating it," he called from down the hall. Yang turned back towards us and a wide look of confusion on her face.

"What happened to you two?" she asked. I finally took a close look at Ruby and myself. We were still wearing our regular clothes, aside from our jackets, which were tossed aside somewhere in the room. Ruby's corset was undone, the strings hastily pulled from their loops, sticking out at various lengths. Her tights had several tears and holes, primarily around her inner thighs. Her hair was also an incredible mess, several strands of hair sticking out, and her hair still retaining some bed head, despite my fix. At that point my hair clip could no longer keep its grip and fell out, rolling on to the floor clinking against a bottle. Following suit, my hair fell to my side, revealing a frizzy, split ended curtain on my hips. Yang went to pick up the clip, but likewise she picked up the bottle.

"Were you two drinking?" she asked us. I turned to Ruby, a guilty and downcast expression painted on her face. Yang marched over to Ruby, dropping my clip by my side. "Ruby, you know you're too young to drink," she scolded her. "All of us are. Let alone five bottles."

"I'm sorry Yang," she pleaded, wide-eyed. "I just found them, and It was snowing and I wanted to do something with Weiss."

"You look like you did something," Blake replied. Ruby looked down, noticing the loose strings on her bodice.

"Wait, did you two?" Yang asked. I hid my face, turning red, while I could see Ruby smiling devilishly. Yang laughed and pulled Ruby into a big hug.

"Yang, too much," Ruby groaned out. Yang let her go, and fell on the bed between us, placing her arms on our shoulders.

"I knew that you two secretly liked each other," she affirmed. "all that sexual tension made it obvious." I looked away, unable to look her in the eye.

"It's not like that at all," I told her. "We just got drunk and…"

"Come on Weiss," she said smacking me on the back. "They say alcohol brings out the true you. And I guess while we're on the subject," she stood up and walked over to Blake. "Blake and I are together," she said grabbing Blake's hand as she laid her head on Yang's shoulder.

"We knew that," I told her flatly.

"Everybody knows," Ruby said. "And I mean everybody."

"Incredibly obvious," Ben replied, appearing out of thin air. Yang and Blake jumped away in shock.

"What are you doing here?" Ruby yelled. "I thought you were done talking."

"I said that the conversation was done," he replied. "also; my semblance. By leaving trace amounts of my aura behind me, I can return to any location I have been within two days. I call it, Total Recall."

"Fuuuck You," Yang retorted. He shot her an ugly look.

"From a combination of latent memory and a rather thorough ass-chewing," he said. "I seem to have remembered the purpose of my assignment."

"Didn't you say it was to check on us?" Ruby asked him.

"That was part of it," he said. "Actually I was supposed to inform you that the Grand Paladino, my boss, Mikal is arriving later today and specifically requested that you be present."

"Why us?" Blake asked.

"You four are the most influential people at this school," he explained. "as such he, and many of us, see you four as examples of the school. How he sees you four, will heavily influence how he sees the school, and what decisions to make regarding it."

"What decisions?" Blake asked.

"Military reinforcement, Grimm hunts, funding," he said. "also Paladin garrisoning."

"Garrisons?" Yang interjected.

"Essentially how many troops to place, the intent of their placement, and the necessity for, morality checks," he listed.

"What is a morality check?" I asked him.

"Nothing you guys need to worry about, I'm sure," he explained. "All it is an observation of how many policies need to be put in place to facilitate a cultural shift."

"What?" Ruby responded.

"Effectively whether or not we ally with the territory or conquer it," he huffed. "You girls are impossible to intimidate."

"Wait what's going to happen to Beacon?" Blake asked.

"You'll be fine," he said. "You're more valuable as an ally than a territory. The only major factor is how he sees you and Beacon." He looked at his watch. "Anyways, he'll be here at noon; and by the way it is now 9:36. You may want to change and clean up." He snapped his fingers, and a flash of light replaced him. We stared at the spot he had stood, awestruck and unable to speak.

"Wait, it was obvious to everyone?" Yang asked.


	2. A Controversial Man

An hour later Weiss and I came out of the shower, draped in only one towel each. Yang and Blake wanted some alone time and considering the fact that Weiss and I were technically together now, we could kill two birds with one stone. As we came out, I saw Blake wrapped up in Yang's arms, purring contently.

"Hey," Yang said. "you two have fun in there?"

"That sounds like something dad would say," I replied. Blake's ears perked up, having heard my speech. She raised her head and set it back down into Yang's chest. Weiss shook her head and walked over to her dresser, grabbing a change of clothes. I joined her, selecting a fresh set of tights. I looked over to Yang who shot me a snarky look.

"There is no way I'm getting up," she said. "Not with this time bomb on my chest." I stared her down. "I mean I'm your sister, Blake isn't looking, and as of an hour ago you wanted Weiss to see you naked." Weiss ignored her, stepping towards the bathroom, fresh clothes in hand. I grabbed my clothes as well and returned to the bathroom to change. A few minutes and we came out of the bathroom again, Blake sitting up against Yang.

"So where are we supposed to meet this Paladin guy Mikal?" I asked aloud.

"Do you not know him?" Weiss asked.

"I don't think any of us know him," I replied.

"I mean know of him," Weiss said. "He's been in Remnant for a while, on and off."

"He phases in and out of our world," Yang said. "But he's never been to Beacon."

"What has he done here? And where are you guts finding this out?" I asked in disbelief. Weiss pulled up her Scroll, and swiped around. She held it up, and the screen read: _/r/BeaconAcadamy._

"What is that?" I asked her.

"It's a blog that was set up for the students," Weiss said. "It talks about everything going on at the school. But more importantly, there are tons of posts about Mikal." I looked closely, several links and pictures with Mikal the central subject.

"Well how do you know so much about him?" I asked her.

"I've hacked into the Shcnee corporation data files," Weiss answered. "It seems that Mikal has had some activity back in Atlas. The files say he was observing our military forces."

"That actually seems suspicious," I replied.

"Thing is, I have never seen him before," she said. "All I have ever seen is the Paladin Garb. That's why I though our guest was Mikal."

"Hey, where are we supposed to meet him?" I asked.

"Beats me," Yang said. "Guy never told us where." As if on cue, Weiss's scroll buzzed and flashed. She checked it.

"Air-ship docks," she said.

"Let's get going then," Yang said, slamming her fist into her hand.

We arrived at the landing pads, only one occupied. Several men dressed in black and red armor, like Benjamin's, were carrying boxes and other containers of supplies. I looked at Weiss, our eyes linking. I grabbed her hand, and slid close to her.

"You think we should be doing this in public?" Weiss asked me, tugging at my hand.

"Come on, it's totally fine," I told her, nuzzling into her shoulder. "Yang and Blake are doing it." Blake was rubbing up close to Yang too. I smiled and rubbed closer to Weiss. In the corner of my eye I could see two figures talking. One was wearing the same armor as the rest, blocking the second figure. The second figure then slid to the side, noticing us. Likewise we recognized him in his dark green suit, leaning on a cane.

"Well girls, you seem to be early," Ozpin said walking over, the armored figure following him. His skin was pale, exhausted rings circling his eyes. His blond hair fell into his blue eyes, slightly obscuring his right eye. He stood at an average height, about a foot shorter than Ozpin and several inches taller than me, but he stood wide and strong, his chest pushed out. But the defining feature was a permanent scowl and squinted eyes, shifting between me and Weiss, and Blake and Yang. "This is Mikal, leader of the Paladin Order," Ozpin explained. I let go of Weiss and Blake of Yang and we stood in front of Mikal. He looked like an angry man, his eyes looking for something, discerning every detail.

"So this is the infamous RWBY?" he asked dryly. He stepped forward, sizing us up and down. As he analyzed us, his eyes switched over to Yang, and they went wide. He stood in front of her in shock, their eyes level. "Well I did not expect that."

"What?" She asked him.

"You are rather tall for a woman," he said.

"Excuse me?" Yang questioned confused.

"Women are generally smaller than men," he said confidently. "Not significantly, but consistently." She stared back at him in confusion. "Trust me honey, it's not worth it to kill over."

"I wasn't thinking that at all," Yang replied.

"Oh," Mikal replied surprised, his face becoming lighter. "well then, I wasn't expecting that either."

"Why would you?" Yang replied.

"There are a few, controversial, organizations where I'm from," he explained. "and of course it bleeds into freaking everything."

"Yes, well," Ozpin said. "Mikal's presence is a result of a long and arduous negotiation process to allow his soldiers a presence at Beacon. In exchange Mikal has promised both military support and Paladin training for our Huntsmen and Huntresses."

"You can just say Hunters," Mikal said. "Brevity is Wit." Ozpin leered back at him. Mikal looked back at us rolling his eyes. "Regardless, I wanted to speak to the _all-stars_ of this school. I have heard only good things for this rookie team."

"Well it's nice to get recognition," Weiss answered in her smug voice; Her cute smug voice.

"Until an hour ago," Mikal said flatly, his face shifting alongside it.

"What?" Blake asked him.

"Don't play dumb," he said. "You and I both know what I'm talking about. Benjamin relayed the info back to me. He merely confirmed the suspicions I had about your team prior to meeting you."

"What suspicions?" I asked sheepishly.

"You are horrible at lying Ruby," he said. "Your tells are all too obvious." He stepped forward, glaring at me. He slid back slightly. "You and I can speak about this in private."

"Just me?" I asked him.

"You're their leader," he said, "You should be representative of them. Meet me on the ship." He said turning on his heel, marching towards the large shipping vessel.

"Don't worry Ruby," Yang said. "We'll meet up later." I looked to Weiss. She closed her eyes and smiled.

"It's okay Ruby," she said. "I'm feeling a lot better. Despite what they believe, the Paladins seem to be incredible healers."

"Even so," Ozpin said walking up. "You should follow me to the infirmary, just to get some vitals." Weiss nodded.

"And Ruby," he said. "After your conversation with Mikal, I would like to speak with you as well. Come meet me in my office." I nodded back to him, as he took Weiss by the shoulder. She looked back, winked, and blew me a kiss. I waved back to her, and turned back to face the looming freighter. I walked up to one of the armored men and tapped him on the back. He turned around, his face contorting into a scowl.

"What do you need?" he said, trying to sound courteous.

"Mikal told me to go talk to him, but I don't know where to go," I told him.

"Follow me," he said flatly, turning back to the ship. As I followed him, I noticed several long metal plates bouncing against his legs, colored yellow in the center with black outlining it.

"So is that a battle skirt?" I asked him directly. He stopped and turned around, an unamused look on his face.

"Technically it is a Kilt," he said dryly. "It is colored to designate our specializations, the same with our armor. My armor is black with yellow trimming, designates Protection Paladins. Yellow with red trim is Holy, like Benjamin; and Black with red trim is Retribution, like Mikal. Now, any other exposition?" I shook my head, and he led me up the ramp. We entered the cargo hold, boxes all around. Several other Paladins carried boxes and other materials out of the freighter. We walked up a flight of steps and turned into a hallway lined with several doors, most likely the crew's quarters. At the end of the hallway was another staircase that led up. When we arrived at the steps another hallway ran perpendicular to the steps. At the end of the hallway was another set of steps and another hallway, most likely another hall of barracks. Between the staircases was a large wall with a set of double doors. He stood by the doors and placed his hand against the side of the door. The doors slid open and he directed me in.

This room was far different. Several banners hung on the walls, some depicting the cross symbol, others depicting fruit and weapons. In front of me was a balcony which had a pair of staircases on either side. On my floor were several tables with chairs surrounding them. I walked over to a table on my right. It had several monitors on it and was strewn about with papers. I touched the mouse, the screen popping to life.

"Ruby!" echoed in the room. I looked up and saw Mikal leaning on the railing. "I see you have found your way to my study. Come up here so that we may speak." I walked up the steps to an oval shaped table with a large gap in the middle. I heard the distinctive clank of a plate, as Mikal set down a plate of cookies on the table.

"Thank you for coming Ruby," he said formally. "I thought it would be easier to speak to you and have you relay the info to your friends, rather than deal with the backlash of four angry girls. Not sure if I could take a punch from Yang."

"What are you talking about?" I asked him. He passed about the table, his hand tracing its outline.

"Benjamin explained to you what the Paladins stand for, did he not?" I asked me, a sly smile on his face.

"Yeah," I replied. "He said something about whether or not you believe in the book or something."

"Ruby, I consider Beacon and its teams to be far more valuable as allies than a threat to the Confederation," he said. "Which is why I have come here. I can take your very capable brothers and sisters and turn them into Paladins, and the Grimm will begin to fall."

"But wouldn't that mean they would have to leave Remnant?" I asked him.

"They don't have to," he replied. "You see, if I were to establish a Basilica here, your friends would not have to leave. They could continue to attend the school and would still interact with you."

"For some reason I feel there is a catch," I said. His face went dark.

"Ruby, the Paladins are an incredible force," he explained. "Men who do God's work. I want to ensure that you will not interfere with that work."

"Why would I do that?" I asked him.

"You have some, qualities that seem worrisome to a man like me," he said. "A man that works to please God." He sat down in one of the chairs, and pulled out a knife from thin air, tossing it between his fingers. "Hammer space by the way. You see, that little relationship you have with Weiss, and your sister's relationship with the catgirl."

"Blake," I interrupted.

"With Blake, seems to be more than just friendship," he said. "As if it would indicate an ideology opposite God's."

"What does it matter?" I asked him.

"God and subsequently the Paladins frown upon the lifestyle of homosexuality and other non-heterosexual lifestyles," he stated.

"I'm not gay," I retorted. "I like guys, and Weiss; but just Weiss, not other girls."

"Interesting," he said flatly. "Never thought I would actually encounter that."

"Someone gay?" I retorted cleverly.

"One: I have met several gay people," he replied. "And two: single target sexuality. For some reason I believe you. She's still a girl though, and that does not excuse you."

"And why is that?" I asked him. "Because some book tells you?"

"Yes!" he exasperated standing up. "Because that book is the word of God. Didn't Benjamin tell that shit to you? Or do I have to repeat it yet again?" he stared with aggressive and frustrated eyes. It seemed this was not the first time he had explained this to someone.

"I remember what he said," I said flatly.

"Good," he said. "Cause you would not be dumb enough to say that the Bible is just some book. You have yet to see, just what I am capable of when I am angry." He slammed the knife into the table, the ornamented knife dug deep into the wood. Three red gems glinted in the light, marking the image of a cross.

"The point is Ruby, I don't care how much of an ally you can be, how strong you are, nothing," he said menacingly. "I serve God, and if that means killing you, I must. Don't make waves Ruby. Because I will do what I must to defend what is written in that Book."

"You're bluffing," I bluffed.

"Five years ago I would have just killed you," he said inching towards me. "But you are more valuable as an ally. Do not make me have to kill you, and your little girlfriend too."

"I thought you were supposed to love and help people," I quickly replied, trying something to calm him down.

"Aye, He is a God of Mercy," he said pulling the blade from the table. "But He is also Just. I give you this warning, because the Fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom."

"What?" I asked intimidated.

"I sense your fear," he said. "And I don't need no powers to detect it, your body is shaking, one foot backwards as if to run." He took a small step forward. "And that's good. Fear is a respect of power. The power I hold is the power of God. And when you fear God, who can stand against you?" he said leering into my eyes. "If you stand against Ruby, how will it turn out?"

"Power?" I yelled back at him, my feet spaced apart, my body ready to attack. "Power does not equal good! Might does not make right! You think that you can lord some idea of power over someone and expect them to bend? Well that person is not me!" he stared at me, and slowly a smile crept across his face, a deep laugh bubbling up through his chest.

"All authority is God's Ruby," he said. "It does not matter if it is seized through power, or representation, or a royal bloodline. Those that lead, lead because God decided it. The Paladins are a display of the great and Awesome power of God. And that power can move mountains, but that power is also what will toss the wicked into the depths of Hell, the power that turned Sodom and Gomorrah into a heap of cinders." He paused. "Tell me Ruby, are familiar with the Tale of Sodom and Gomorrah?"

"I'm afraid not," I said.

"How can I put briefly?" he asked himself. "The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were the most wicked and evil of all cities, worshipers of idols and evil. And when God saw that there were no righteous men, aside from Lot within the City, he destroyed them. He sent his messengers to save Lot and his family, and the wicked city of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed in a rain of fire and brimstone." He plucked a cookie off the plate. "I could go into far more detail, but that is its own sermon Ruby. In essence, Lawful Good doesn't Lawful Nice." He chomped on the cookie, breaking it in half. In that instant, I felt and incredible uneasiness, some unseen force about to appear.

"I, I," I struggled to say. "I am leaving now." Hopping off the balcony to the bottom floor. I made it to the door when I heard him speak.

"You know if you just break it off with Veiss, none of that has to happen," he said. "Same with Blake and Yang. I know you can't control them, but you can control yourself. Also," he snapped his fingers, and the plate of cookies appeared in my hands. "Expected you to eat them all the moment you saw them. So you do feel guilty. Regardless take them, and keep the plate." I huffed and opened the door. "One last thing Ruby," he said. I turned my head back to him. "I may seem like an angry man, but am merely passionate about what I believe. I feel an intense conviction, as do the rest of my men. To you it may seem bigoted, but to us, we wage a war against a world that would have us destroyed. It is my hope that you see in more than the crusader, more than the Warrior King," he said.

"I do not want you to be my enemy Ruby, and right now I do not consider you to be. But circumstances may turn you against me. I say this, because no one is too far gone. The Paladin Order is filled with men and women who were the worst examples of humanity; the operative word being were. Even Saul persecuted Christians, and then he became Paul, the greatest asset in the establishment of the Early Church. For everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved." I turned back and walked out of the doorway and out of the ship, putting that conversation out of my mind. As I walked down the ramp, Blake and Yang were standing there waiting for me.

"He gave you cookies?" Yang asked, plucking one off the plate.

"Yeah, that and a lecture," I said, grabbing a cookie for myself. "He threatened to kill me."

"What?" Blake asked aghast. "he wasn't serious was he?"

"He seemed really serious," I said. "He was really dark about it; he explained tons of reasons why. And the weird part is, he ended it with some attempt at comforting me."

"There is no way he's being serious Ruby," Yang said, placing her hand on my shoulder. "He's just bluffing. I'm sure he's putting up a tough façade; he's probably just a friendly bear underneath that rough exterior."

"He said that he would kill us for being together," I said.

"What do you mean, together?" Yang asked.

"He said he would kill me and Weiss for being together, and you two too," said.

"Just for that?" Blake asked. "that man is crazy."

"Perhaps we should speak now, rather than later," Ozpin said, walking over, Weiss at his side.

"Ozpin," I said. "I thought you took Weiss to the infirmary."

"I asked Ozpin to cover for me Ruby," Weiss said. "I needed to talk to him alone."

"I'm sorry I had to fool you like this," Ozpin said. "But I believe it would benefit us all if we spoke about Mikal, without his presence."

We sat in his office, Ozpin sipping on a cup of coffee. He set the cup down, and began to speak.

"How familiar are you four with Mikal?" he asked.

"Just what the advance reports said," Yang said. "His and the Paladin bios."

"Those reports are significantly limited," Ozpin said. "They contain only the necessary information about the Paladin Order."

"Seems like an organization so big would have more than a page's worth of necessary data on it," Blake replied.

"Which is precisely why I called you here," he said. He stood up and looked out the window. "Three months ago, three men dressed in red robes appeared at Beacon, demanding that they speak to me. Without any clearance or permission they charged into my office, screaming some nonsense about an inquisition. I quickly had them apprehended. They seemed to not put up a fight, but then one of them told me, that it was just the beginning. He said their master would be coming soon."

"Mikal?" Blake asked.

"Exactly," Ozpin replied. "The next month, in red and black armor shining gold and white, Mikal stood in my office." Ozpin returned to his desk, opening a drawer and pulling out his scroll, setting it on the desk's surface. "He informed me that those three were the advance guard he sends when he begins an Inquisition."

"Inquisition?" I asked him.

"Mikal has fought many battles," Ozpin said. "Most of which were ideological. He tries to fight battles with words before he must fight with arms."

"If Benjamin is any example of Mikal, I'd fight with arms rather than words," Weiss said. "While Benjamin did help us out, he did say some rather offensive things."

"On what grounds?" Ozpin asked.

"Like what I said earlier," I said. "Mikal wouldn't hesitate to kill me just for being with Weiss. Same thing with Yang and Blake."

"I believe you are not seeing the whole picture Ruby," Ozpin said. "He said the same thing to me, albeit with a different context. He told me he would kill me if I would become an enemy."

"He seems like a rather hostile man," Blake said. "One to shoot first and ask questions later."

"Rather close minded too," Yang said.

"You sound surprised," Ozpin said. "He is a very religious man, as is the nature of his Order. If there is one thing he did talk about, it was the nature of the Order. It is a very traditionalist order, focused on a strict adherence to their holy book."

"So they are fundamentalists?" Weiss asked. "Where dissenting thought automatically equals damnation and vilification?"

"It is hard to advance when people do not think the same," Ozpin said sitting down, interweaving his fingers and leaning on his hands. "I don't agree with his methods, and I am not justifying his rationale, but just because I disagree doesn't automatically disqualify his beliefs. Like I said, he has fought many battles; mostly debates of ideology. But this adherence to what he believes shows incredible resolve. In a world that constantly challenges his Faith, he stands strong, even when it means sacrificing relationships and popularity."

"So, it's more important for him to be right than to be liked?" I asked.

"That's the caveat," Ozpin said. "He thinks he is right. And he could be. All the things he has ever done could have been the right thing to do and when we are all dead we stand before God, and Mikal will be blessed for his actions, while we will be punished for our lack of faith. Or, Mikal could be wrong. There is no sure way to know."

"But his beliefs just seem like hate," Blake said. "All he wants to do is kill or hamper anybody that disagrees."

"To him it may be love," Ozpin said. "Does a parent not discipline their child so that they can learn from their mistakes? A child may see a toy taken away from them as a harsh punishment and a sign of hate from their parent, but that isn't the case. From Mikal's perspective, he is trying to help people. To him, if the culture abhors certain behaviors, the negatives won't arise from them, purely because they are less likely to occur."

"Are you taking his side?" Blake yelled at him.

"I am merely stating facts and observations," Ozpin said calmly. "I am on no one's side. The very fact that you react this way is a reaction to his perspective and life. It is no different than his reactions to you. Mortals at their core fear what they do not understand. And when we are afraid, we will do whatever we can to no longer be afraid." I looked at my teammates, each wearing a scowl on their faces. Ozpin sighed and stood up.

"You are at the point in your life when you start encountering people with opposing viewpoints," he said. "But the important part is to understand where they stand and have empathy for them. You don't have to agree, you just have accept they think differently."

"But they just seem hostile," Blake said. "All the Paladins seem to be are a bunch of hateful bigots."

"Based on but one point of Doctrine?" a voice spoke out of thin air. A light formed in a single space and a silhouette formed, revealing the armored man we were speaking about, Mikal.

"How did you get in here?" Blake hissed at him.

"Told you to spring for the Magic proofing Ozpin," he said walking over. "You seem to be the only one actually angry Blake, so I'll talk to you directly. Do you oppose the Paladins purely because we consider non-traditional sexual lifestyles to be sin?"

"That is a loaded question," Blake said.

"But is that a factor?" Mikal asked. "Are you going to vilify a group of people on only one point or do you know enough factors that justify your opposition?" Blake stood there, her face falling, unable to reply. "Blake, let me try to explain this incredibly complex situation as simply as I can. What I have consistently seen in these situations is that we as Paladins hold a Christian belief that many actions and lifestyles are sinful, and as sins we cannot justify them and subsequently oppose them. You, as a member or practitioner of such a lifestyle, feel personally attacked. When you hear that we oppose being gay, or whatever it is you are, you feel that as a member of that orientation, you yourself are being attacked." Blake looked away, unable to answer. "Blake, the same thing happens to me. When somebody says God does not exist I feel a personal attack. I feel there is undeniable truth to the existence of God, and someone denying that proof is saying that we are stupid or easily fooled." he passed his eyes across the room and sighed.

"What I am saying is, no one is immune to that," he said. "we all feel attacked when something we love is hated by someone else, and it hurts when we know someone is actively trying to stop it. But we see it as sin. We know that we can't stop people from acting in such a way, but we can provide an environment encouraging Godly behavior. In order to do that we need paragons of Faith, and those are the Paladins. Paladins are trained to fight, and sometimes, people take our weapons as a challenge and attack. We uphold the law and so we need to reestablish order, even if that means permanently removing the threat."

Blake walked over to Yang's side, grabbing her arm. I could see the disgust begin to form on Mikal's face, Blake deliberately trying to upset him. However Mikal merely sighed and continued speaking. "But, I believe it is more important to be united on what is similar than divide on what is different. That is why I have come here. Right now we need to look beyond our differences and focus on what unites us. There is little chance I will change your mind, so why beat a dead horse trying to?" I stood up confronting him.

"Then why did you say you would kill us?" I said.

"You twist my words Ruby," he replied. "If such lifestyles motivate you to oppose me, I will be bound by faith to end you. But if we can both humble ourselves, and look past our differences to unite against our enemies, then we have the potential to be great allies."

"I still don't trust you," I said.

"Ruby if I truly considered you an enemy, I would have already killed you," he said.

"That doesn't inspire trust," I said. He sighed and reached into his pocket.

"Then perhaps a peace offering," he said pulling out four slips of paper. "Four tickets to an opera hosted in the Capital City of the Confederation. Come and see our people, and see that we are not monsters out to hurt you. See that we can look past our pride and that we do not hate your kind." I grabbed the tickets and looked them over."So you will come?" I looked over to my team, Weiss and Yang nodded, Blake just clung to Yang. "It is settled then, we shall reconvene later this evening at your Dorm and I shall transport you to the venue."

"Good, I can leave," Blake said storming out. Yang hurriedly followed after her. Weiss and I both hurried out the door in pursuit. Weiss and I made it halfway through the hall before I heard a call behind me.

"Ruby," Mikal said behind me, Weiss running off ahead. He stepped forward. "It seems that Blake has distrust of traditionalists." He stared at me as I stared off. "Does she think me a racist?"

"Are you?" I asked him.

"Perhaps," Mikal said. "I am not accustomed to beast-men, but I do not hate them. But likewise, Blake may be conditioned to hate the portions of society more focused on convention than innovation." I gave him a confused look. "I believe that she is disguising her perception of me hating her for being Faunus through me hating her for being attracted to Yang. She's experiencing Cognitive Dissonance."

"What is that?"

"Well in this case," he explained. "Blake is so convinced that Religious and traditionalist folk are racist that when she encounters one that isn't, she has a hard time accepting it."

"That has to be incredibly difficult to deal with," I said. Suddenly, he grabbed my hand, placing a red stone in my palm.

"It would be best if I keep my distance from her, I'm guessing you will have a better time helping her cope with the pain," he said. "When you want to use the stone, pass your forefinger over the rough edge and a portal should appear. The house opens and hour before the show." He walked down the hall and disappeared into thin air as I speed by with my semblance, trying to catch up to Weiss and my team. No matter what was happening, I know that Blake would fare better sooner rather than later.


	3. A Night at the Opera

"Blake let me in, come on!" I yelled banging on the bathroom door.

"Leave me alone Yang!" she yelled back.

"Blake, you can't just lock yourself in there," I said. She had been the first back to our room, and her first decision was to lock herself in the bathroom. I huffed and sat in front of the locked door. "Fine, then I'll just talk through the door. What happened back there?" she didn't respond. "I don't care how ridiculous this is Blake; I will keep talking for as long as it takes to get you out of there."

"What's going on?" Weiss asked stepping in the room, Ruby quickly filing in behind.

"Blake locked herself in the bathroom," I said. "She refuses to come out."

"Why?" Ruby asked. I shrugged.

"She hasn't said anything," I said. "She is just skulking in there."

"Blake come out please?" Ruby pleaded with her.

"We just want to talk," Weiss said as well.

"It's not gonna work," I said. "If she won't come out for me, she won't come out for nobody else." Ruby stepped forward, and knocked on the door.

"Blake, please," she said. "we're concerned about you. We just want to help, and we can't help if you don't talk to us." no answer. Weiss spoke.

"We know something's happening," Weiss said. "And, and we want to make sure you are okay." I stood up, and rapped my hand on the door.

"Blake, I know you're hurt," I said. "And I want to help. I love you Blake, and it hurts me to see you in such pain. We all love you, but if you won't come out for Ruby and Weiss, at least come out for me?"

The door knob jostled about and the door slowly opened. Blake stood in the doorway, engrossed in tears, sobbing uncontrollably. My face fell. "Blake what's wrong?" I asked setting my hand on her shoulder. She threw herself into my chest, and burst into tears, crying loudly. I slowly set her on her bed as she cried into my shoulder. Ruby and Weiss quietly slipped out, but Blake spoke up.

"No, please don't leave," she choked out. Ruby and Weiss turned back, sitting on the other bed. She wiped her eyes.

"What's wrong Blake?" I asked her, looking into her eyes.

"Mikal sounds just like a racist," she said. "he hides behind some self-righteous ideology, but deep down he just hates me for being something I can't control. If he really wanted unity why would he have a mindset that is inherently opposed to differing thought?"

"He said that it's more important to work together than apart," Ruby said.

"If he was so concerned with cooperation he wouldn't be angry that I was with a human," she yelled. I looked at her rather confused. She blushed. "A girl, I mean."

"You think he hates you because of an interracial relationship?" Weiss asked.

"No, I," Blake flustered. "It felt like he was attacking me being a Faunus. I just got defensive." Ruby smiled and pulled out the tickets from her cloak.

"That's why he gave these to me," he said holding the tickets up. "He said they were a peace offering. I looked at the price, and he comped us four of them." She held them in front of us. I plucked a pair from her hand, and Blake took one from my hand.

"So what?" Blake asked. "My loyalty is worth a show?"

"He wouldn't just give these tickets away," Ruby said. "Plus, when you think about it," she said a sly look appearing on her face. "He paid for a date." Weiss and Blake both turned red at the mention of the word date.

"Date?" Blake said blushing. I smiled and wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her close.

"You know," I said. "You can at least make him pay for the show. Plus, I was hoping this could be a nice and easy way to be more open about our relationship." Blake blushed again. She ever wanted to hide the fact we were together, but for both our sakes agreed it was best. But of course I knew she couldn't resist being able to nuzzle up to my side in public.

"I guess, if Mikal is paying," She said. I jumped up in excitement.

"All right then!" I yelled. I pulled Blake up and gave her a deep kiss. When we broke the kiss she blushed from embarrassment, and I came up with a devious plan. "You know," I said fiendishly. "If you help me into my dress I'll help you into yours." Her eyes went blank and I pulled her towards the bathroom, giving me little resistance. This time Ruby and Weiss could talk and Blake and I could have some fun.

I slipped out the door, joining up with rest of my teammates. Weiss passed her eyes over each of us, slightly upset.

"I feel a little underdressed," she said. She was right, each of us were wearing our prom dresses, just simple dresses.

"I think we're fine," I told her.

"This is an opera Yang," she said. "You would wear this at a dance, not for an opera." A glow began to emanate from Ruby's pocket. She pulled her hand from her pocket, and revealed a glowing red stone. In a quick flash, a red light enveloped the four of us. Our dresses began to change form, covered in a red silhouette of a dress. After the rush of wind, each of us wore a new dress with a pair of elbow length gloves.

A ribbon wrapped around Blake's midsection and across her chest, showing off her bust. Several silk sheets curled around her legs, exposing only her feet. Her upper arms were covered with small netting attached to the shoulders of her bodice. Weiss's dress wrapped close around her, showing off her midsection with several layers of white and light blue. The dress wrapped around her left shoulder and was connected to her white gloves by a small garter clip. Draped over her right shoulder was a small fur that hung behind her back. Ruby's dress curled around her legs, the creases forming a spiral pattern in the red fabric, wrapped at her waist with a red ribbon. She had a red top underneath a chiffon bodice that wrapped around her neck. As for myself, I had a simple yellow dress, with a slit over my left leg, exposing my long toned leg. The dress continued up to my bust, my back exposed, apart from my orange scarf.

"Well that works," Weiss said. "What's with that red stone Ruby?"  
"Mikal gave it to me," she said. "He said it would transport us to the venue." She passed the stone her hand, and stroked it with a finger. The world around us began to shimmer like the reflection in a pond, and in its place stood a large domed building with several people flowing into it. Several floodlights were perched upon it, illuminating the walkway towards the building, and a large text that wrote, Robert L. Larsen Opera House. We passed through the glass door entrance, revealing a massive interior. It was a vast lobby, filled with statues and paintings being admired by several masses. There was a large plaque, explaining the building's history and the several art exhibits.

"Excuse me miss," a voice behind me said, placing their hand of my shoulder. I quickly turned around and prepped myself for a strike, but saw the man from this morning, this time in a tux. "Well Yang, how long has it been?" he said.

"Who the hell are you?" I asked. He looked confused.

"Did we not talk this morning?" he said. "Benjamin." He said presented his hand. I lowered my arms, and grabbed his hand. He lifted it, and gave it a small peck. I quickly retracted my hand. "Anyways, have you presented your tickets?" he said, palm outstretched.

"Hey, Ruby," I called out. She admired a statue of a warrior with lion and eagle shaped shoulder plates. She heard me call and ran over, pulling out the tickets. Benjamin took them and quickly gave them a scan.

"Mikal really likes you," he said, handing the tickets back.

"Why's that?" I said.

"Gave you box seats," he said. "May want to find your friends." He walked over to another set of patrons and I walked out into the lobby. People clustered around statues, admiring their image. One statue was a man in a horned helmet wielding a knife and a sword. Another was an old man in plate armor wielding a giant blade which had a guard in the shape of an L. I found Weiss admiring one of the many paintings on the wall. It was a vast landscape, covered in snow. The focus of the piece was a large tower in the distance. Is shoes spires thrust into the sky, despite being far away from the location. I looked at the id tag, the pale citadel.

"Hey there you guys are," Blake said, walking towards us. Suddenly, a chorus of sound erupted from the stairs. A chorus of singers dressed in tuxes and black dresses stood on the steps, led by an ancient looking man, wearing a tux with tails. The choir looked so young, students most likely. They finished and quickly filed out.

"The show's about to begin girls," Benjamin said walking up. "Do you need help finding your seats?" He lead us up a flight of steps and through a passageway. We were on a balcony overlooking the stage. He led us to a small area, marked off with metal poles. Within the box was a small table surrounded by four chairs. He detached a velvet rope from a pole, allowing us entrance. We took our seats and he replaced the rope, bowing. It was a stunning view. From our vantage point the entire stage was in view. I looked around as we waited for the show to start. There were several other boxes; one filled with four businessmen, another with a silver haired man and a Faunus. The crowd began to quiet down and I looked to the stage. A lone member of the orchestra played a note, and rest followed suit. When the orchestra finished, a man entered in, and the hall was filled with the cacophony of applause. The curtains opened, revealing an older woman and a young crippled boy. Throughout the show there were three kings and an entire crowd of shepherds. The ending was very sweet. The boy was healed and went off to give his crutch to the newborn child.

When the show was over everybody emptied into the lobby. Ruby was going off about one of the songs, crying 'this is my box, this is my box.' Weiss went off on her own to congratulate to performers, while Yang went somewhere else. I perused the art galleries, observing the paintings and the statues. As I walked about the gallery, I saw one statue grab my eye. It depicted a nude woman with the ears and tail of a wolf, lying against a crescent moon, whilst she bit an apple. The moon itself rested on several sheaves of wheat.

"Tis a lovely replica isn't it?" a woman asked from behind me. I turned around to see a small woman fitting the same description as the statue draped in a maroon dress.

"Yeah," I said dumbfounded. "It looks just like you."

"Of course," she said. "The breasts were cast from a mold of my own." I leered at her.

"That isn't something you would say to a stranger," I told her. "It shouldn't be something you should say to anyone."

"Oh, you are as prudish as Mikal himself," she said. "Rather hypocritical as well, considering your attire." I looked down to see my breasts squeezed together, my cleavage exposed. I quickly covered myself with my arms.

"So you know Mikal?" I asked her.

"Of course," she said. "He commissioned the statue. He even paid me to stand in as the model. It is shame though how the artist could not capture my tail." I looked at the tail hanging over the crescent moon. Each strand of hair was carefully cut into the medium, the finest detail carefully planned. "But how could you copy so lovely a tail?" she said, stroking a long and think hair tail. "Or such beautiful ears?" she said petting her ears. "Of course your ears are quite cute." I quickly grabbed my head, noticing I wasn't wearing my bow. She responded with a light smile. "Don't be so self-conscious," she said. "they need not be large to be beautiful. I hear they get larger with age."

"My ears?" I asked her.

"No, what made you think I was speaking your ears?" she asked. I stared at her, red. She smiled back. "You shouldn't be worried here." She stepped forward and pulled down my arms. "Beast-men are not feared or hated here. In fact," she leaned in whispering in my ear. "Some have quite the fetish for us." she smiled. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I must meet up with my escort." She walked out of sight.

"What is your name?" I called after here.

"Look to the statue," she said. I looked closely at the plaque alongside the statue. It read _Holo, The Wolf of Harvest._ I looked back, and she was lost in the crowd. I passed through the thick masses looking for my teammates. Across the room, I saw Mikal, wearing a tux, speaking to the ancient man who had been conducting the choir earlier. I could see his face clearer; it was a kind, wrinkled face, a small mustache matched with a light curtain for a beard. His hair was slicked back from a receding hairline, and he rested upon a cane. Mikal let out a large laugh, while the old man gave a small smile. Mikal leaned forward to him and grasped his hands with his own, whilst nodding. The two parted ways, Mikal catching me in his sight. He strode over, passing straight through the crowd.

"Tell me Blake," he said. "Did you enjoy the show? Quite a classic."

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it," I said. "Who was that old man?" he looked over, and I saw him speaking to several people in the crowd.

"That is Dr. Robert Larsen," he said solemnly. "One of the greatest musical influences of my life, and all around musical legend."

"That's the name of the building," I said.

"Of course," he said. "When I built the opera house he was the only man who I thought could deserve the honor." He motioned to the wall behind him revealing a painting of the old man, alongside several paragraphs of text. I looked off into the crowd, observing a group of faunus girls chatting it up.

"How common are faunus here?" I asked him.

"We call them beast-men here," he said. "and there are plenty. Quite a sizable population. Tell me, have I proven my trust?" he asked. I was taken aback. He was so focused on proving he wasn't some prejudiced asshole.

"I mean, there are a lot of us here," I said. "people have been friendly. But I still don't like you!"

"I don't expect you to," he said. "All I wanted was your trust. Your aid. I couldn't care less about you and your problems. We need to agree to disagree, and get on with helping each other. So, do I have your trust?" he asked hand outstretched. I stared at his hand, contemplating my decision. I grabbed his hand, answering his request. He smiled and firmly gripped my hand.

"Blake there you are," Yang said, jumping on my back.

"You seem excited," Mikal said. "Did you girls enjoy the show?"

"I loved it, especially when the shepherds came in and then they did that dance," Ruby exclaimed. "And Gaspar, 'This is my Box, This is my Box' I loved it!"

"Well I'm glad you girls enjoyed it," Mikal said as Yang slowly slipped her arms around my waist. I could see Mikal's eyes slowly twitch, holding back an angry outburst. "Well I hope we have been able to show our good will."

"It is quite diverse," Weiss said. "Not to mention the detail of the artwork."

"Yes thank you, our artists have an incredible focus on replication. Most of the statues are casts," he said.

"Wait so Holo was right?" I asked.

"She's lying," he said. "She wishes her boobs were that big." A cloud of white debris appeared around Mikal's head, while the remnants of an apple fell to the ground. "Fuck you to bitch." He huffed under his breath. He wiped the apple flesh from his head. "Do you still have that stone Ruby?"

"I lost it?" she said, sheepishly.

"No matter," he said plainly, pulling a blue gem from thin air. "This is a return stone. It will send you back." He handed the gem to Ruby. "Oh, and if you ever feel like coming back to the City, the Paladins will be able to provide you transport. You'll be seeing a lot more of me." Ruby smiled and grabbed onto Weiss's hand and I nuzzled into Yang's shoulder. I looked at Mikal, whose smile was slowly waning. The world then began to ripple out of sight, blurred in the transition. The image stabilized, and we stood in the hallway of our dorm. Ruby and Weiss giggled and entered the room.

"We should probably give them some private time," Yang said. "You want to get some coffee?" I smiled and nodded, and gleefully hung off of her arm as we went to share our beverage.

**A/M Two chapters for you this time. Once again I hate FanFiction's formatting issues, but nonetheless, Enjoy the Christmas gift of two chapters. and of course, review, ask questions, et cet. And thank you for following! **


	4. The Basilica

The next morning we walked down to the docks to confront Mikal, as a team. There was no way I would let any man push around my little sister. As we approached the docks, we encountered a large stone brick building that seemed to have popped up overnight. Hanging on the side of the stone building were several thick tapestries, each one depicting the Cross against a gold starburst. The side that we approached held a gate that was wide open, men and women in Paladin garb entering and exiting. Some carried stone, others wood, some carried blades. We weaved between them into a large artificially lit hall. The building was imposing, the ceiling looming over us. At either wall, several screens flashed with seemingly infinite and incoherent data, observed by several attentive paladins transcribing the information onto small handheld screens. As we continued down the hall, we passed by a pair of doorways on either side of the building, opening into small hallways that no doubt connected into another portion of the building. At the center of this hall was a large table several stood around. I strode up to the table, the light of the intersecting hall flooding over us. The large man standing in front of me looked over his shoulder and turned around. His face was wrinkled with age, mostly around his eyes. His red hair was matted and slicked back and he wore a chin curtain beard. He wore, in addition to gold and black paladin armor, a large cape draped over his back which depicted the Paladin Cross. He turned around, revealing several medals sewn into his tabard.

"I am Forward Commander Bartholomew," he stated in a bold and deep voice. "XO of the Remnant Expedition. What is your business here?"

"We want to talk to Mikal," I stated boldly. "Personal business."

"With Mikal all business is personal," he replied. "It is rather crass and rude to barge in and demand an audience at a moment's notice, let alone with a man as busy as Mikal. What gives you the right?" I brandished my fist, Ember Celica deploying.

"That would be a very unwise decision girl," he stated, revealing a blade at his side. Several other soldiers stepped up, aiming rifles at us. "You do not want to start a fight with a Paladin, let alone an army of them." Behind him a flash of blue light appeared across the table. The commander turned around in response.

"Bartholomew, it's fine," Mikal's voice said through the receiver. "Set up a portal and I'll speak to them at The Basilica." The commander nodded and swiped a small screen on his arm. He flicked his hand and the soldiers around us lowered their guns and filtered into other parts of the building. From the left hall, a small robed woman passed by one of the soldiers. Her robe was an immaculate combination of reds and blues, interwoven into fine spiral patterns. In her hand she held a large staff, gold and silver, with a large diamond at the tip.

"She will transport you to the entrance of Basilica del Paladino," He said. "There you will be directed to Mikal so that you may speak privately with him." The woman nodded and positioned her hands above and below her body, a blue white glow emanating from both. A blue circle drew itself around me and the rest of the team, a glow filling it in. Suddenly, we were caught up in a pillar of blinding white light.

When the pillar faded, were stood not in a small stone structure, but before the gates of a massive imposing building. It towered far larger than the small base back home. It was several stories tall, at least four. Suddenly a gust of wind swept at us, covering us in snow. I felt fine thanks to my semblance, but everybody else didn't fare so well. Weiss's legs shook uncontrollably, Blake crossed her arms for warmth, and even Ruby was shivering. Slowly it became warmer in the air around us, and the snow melted in a circle. Underneath us a sand circle in alternating red and white appeared, each ring containing a set of poles holding a gold spark. I looked around the great building, on either side a large forest of white and pink flowered trees. As I looked, one of the trees had a sudden rustle. My eyes darted to see what had moved it. Leaning up against the tree was a lanky, silver haired man. He wore a green hood the hid much of his face and wrapped around his body like a coat. His legs were covered in brown fur specked with white snowflakes. But the final feature was the curve of a wooden bow that wrapped around his midsection.

"Yang come on!" Ruby yelled over to me. I looked back and Ruby and the others were speaking to a small black haired girl in red and yellow schemed Paladin garb, eyes buggy. "They're taking us to Mikal." I looked back to the forest, but the man was gone. I turned back and followed behind the shaky Paladin girl. We passed through the massive gates into a grand hallway. Either wall was reinforced with giant arches that created separate rooms. Above the arches were several stained windows, mirrored on each wall. Each set was a different depiction. One had a bow and arrow, another a black cross, one depicted the traditional four elements, and one was a grand tree. As we arrived to the center of the structure a hall intersected much like the building before. Above us was an imposing glass dome, decorated with several rings of stained glass, its color reflecting below on a giant rug, mirroring the color of the dome. In front of us was short hall, a large Cross dominating the far wall. It was set against several lights, shaped into a starburst. In front of it were several rows of seats. That must have been the church in this base. We walked to the left and into a hall dominated by gold, red, and black. Several paladins went about their business, reading out of books, taking notes at tables. A giant tapestry hung on the far wall, depicting a large hammer with the symbol of a red star with a blue wing set upon the hammer head. We stopped in front of a set of frosted glass doors in a large overwhelming box of a room. She opened the doors and we stepped into the office. It was a large space, several screens on the walls. Aside from that there was only Mikal at his round desk, with several monitors surrounding him.

"Thank you Tomoko," he said. She bowed and quickly left the room. He stopped typing and stood up, walking out from his desk. "So tell me Yang, what is so important to talk about that you barge into my office?"

"What makes you think it's just me?" I asked.

"I have already spoken to Ruby on the subject, Weiß doesn't give a shit, and Blake is used to persecution," he listed off. We stood in silence, his theories being fairly accurate. "Oh yeah, I can read you like a book; one of my better qualities really. You can tell a lot about a person based on many factors: their body movement, what clothes they wear, what colors they wear, what websites they frequent; those are the effective ones," his eyes went wide and began to smile. "You'd be surprised how many of my opinions of people change just by checking some comment history. Or discover that one asshole deleted his account," he laughed. I stared him down, unamused.

"You told Ruby that you would kill her," I said.

"You twist my words Yang," he said. "I said if circumstances would bring her to become my enemy I would not hesitate to kill her."

"Is that any different?" Blake asked. "From what Ruby said, you would kill her because she's with Weiss; or as far as you're concerned, a homosexual."

"Whether or not Ruby would ally herself with them," he said. "more active or radical groups would rally behind her, use her as a symbol, and they would do whatever they could to stop me, us, and more importantly, God."

"God, God, that's all you ever talk about," Weiss said. "Just trying to please some unseen force that you can't even prove."

"For what is known about God is clear to them, because God has shown it to them," he spoke. "But although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Romans Chapter 1, verses 19 and 21." Weiss stood down and looked away, unable to look Mikal in the eye.

"You think you're such top shit?" I yelled. "using fancy rhetoric to justify discrimination?"

"I only use the words of my Faith," he said. "The Bible is incredibly effective at challenging people's views. Weiß has experienced the first step."

"What step?" I asked him.

"Conviction," he said. "Regardless of how much either of us thinks we know about her, she has a few existential and epistemological issues lying within her soul. Good thing you're in a church Weiss."

"You are some manipulative bastard!" I yelled.

"The fuck did I do?" he asked. "Seriously, why did I do to piss you off?"

"Look, Ruby is important to me," I said. "and if there is any threat to her, I will do anything to remove it." I slammed my fists together.

"I see," he said suddenly and calmly, his face becoming lighter. "Then to two of us aren't so different."

"Excuse me?" I asked him.

"The both of us are trying to protect something precious to us," he said. "You want to protect Ruby, and I want to protect my brothers in the Faith. Both are under very real threat to their lives; Ruby to the Grimm and other Remnant threats, and My people to murderous radical Muslims."

"That's oddly specific," I said. "Also what's a Muslim?"

"It's a topical subject back where I'm from," he said. "But all you need to know about it is that it's a faith that developed out of Christianity that focuses on very aggressive methods of spreading their faith. Mostly through Holy War, or Jihad."

"Something tells me there is another side to the story," Blake said.

"How observant of you Blake, you want a fucking cookie?" he said. "regardless of how you feel about Muslims, a vast majority of their members do believe that the violent acts made by these extreme members are justified."

"How much is a majority?" I asked.

"Anywhere from 60 to 99.99% depending on who you ask," he said. "That is repeating of course."

"Why are they so violent?" Ruby asked.

"Probably cause they don't understand satire," he said. "Hell, I'm about two feet from scrawling their precious prophet's name on a weapon of mine just to make a point."

"Is that the most prudent thing to do?" Blake asked.

"Neither do you too, apparently," he said.

"I don't think you would appreciate having your God mocked," Blake responded.

"Hey I said I'm two feet from it," he said. "It's gonna take something extreme to get me to put the name on Crescent Star."

"Crescent Star?" Ruby asked.

"Loosely based on Crescent Rose," he said. "Except instead of a scythe it's more of an axe with a crescent moon for a blade, and instead of a sniper rifle it's a mother fucking machine gun." We all stood in silence, shocked by his speech. "What!?" he said. He rolled his eyes. "Regardless, what's it gonna take for you to trust me, Yang?" he stepped forward and leered into my eyes.

"Despite your opposition to those violent Muslims you're so found of bashing, you are incredibly violent yourself," I said. "Prove to me you're no worse than them."

"Are you suggesting that I halt all efforts to garrison and reinforce military forces in need of men? To not defend the unarguably innocent victims of extremist attacks?" I stepped back, considering his words. "we are a vast organization. Our influence stretches quite far, and extends to help the welfare of many people. We engage in war, only when it is the only viable option, not to justify killing people." His face became softer. "Look, it's a tough subject back home, and I do admit my opinion is not the only one. It's going to take many views to solve such an issue, which is rather applicable to why I need your support. If I am to be an effective force in Remnant, I am going to need your trust." I looked away, unable to speak. "Two weeks," he said. "I promise two weeks, I will limit our activity in Remnant. We will only focus on establishing a garrison and nothing else. This should prove my desire to cooperate with you."

"Fine," I said. He smiled.

"Good," he said. "It is nice to finally find a compromise. Now, feel free to look around, see a little more of the common folk of the Confederation." He sat down at the computer and began to type something. "Weiß, if you want, you can speak to one of the Priests in the opposite hall regarding any epistemological issues. I've wired you some credit so the four of you can sample some of the local cuisine; do some shopping I don't care. Just shut up, take my money, and let us do our work." Weiss and Ruby slipped out together, while Blake hung back. I stood staring him down until she placed her hand on my shoulder. I followed her out to doorway, and we held our own meeting together.

"Well that could have gone better," Blake said.

"I told you guys he talked weird," Ruby said.

"He sounds very condemning," Blake said. "Even if he tries to be peaceful about something, it sounds so hostile."

"And for some reason he thinks he can buy our forgiveness," I said. I looked over to Weiss who was still sulking, unable to look us in the eye. "Weiss, what's wrong?" her eyes darted over, her arms still covering her chest.

"Weiss," Ruby said. "Please, tell us. Tell me," She grabbed onto Weiss's hands, pleading with her. Weiss pulled her hands away, and wrapped her arms around Ruby, pressing her against her chest.

"I'm sorry," Weiss said, tears welling in her eyes. "I, I don't know how to describe it, but I have this pain in my chest. Much like when I think of you Ruby, but different."

"What do you mean?" I asked her. Ruby slipped out of Weiss's arms as she loosened her grip.

"I feel confused," she said. "I don't know what's going on. I think what Mikal said really got to me."

"From what I gathered he just called you stupid, like some playground bully," I said. "Don't let it get to you." She looked up, and sighed.

"It's deeper than that," she said. "It's something personal." I shifted my weight.

"Oh, I'm sorry Weiss," I said rubbing the back of my head. "Too personal, my bad."

"It's fine, but I think I will take Mikal up on his offer and talk to a Priest," Weiss said. I looked over at the opposite hall. It looked basically the same, except with a different color scheme. While it kept gold, the colors red and black were replaced with relative opposites, light blue and white. A tapestry hung on the opposite wall as well, depicting a staff with an oval shaped head with a red gem in the center.

"Perhaps," Blake said. "Perhaps you could get some info about Mikal and the Paladins Weiss." My eyes lit up.

"If we split up we can find out more about this place Mikal is in control of," I said. And more importantly I could find that cloaked archer. Ruby nodded.

"I'll stay here, talk to some of the paladins," Ruby said.

"I saw a few Faunus here," Blake said. "I can find them and see how they fare here."

"And I'll head out and see how strong the paladin influence is here," I said. We nodded and were about to part ways when a paladin carrying several coats walked near us.

"Excuse me," he said. He was fairly young aside from a scraggly beard, not unlike Mikal's, but his eyes were light in weight and his skin was lighter in tone. "You girls seem to have neglected to bring warm clothing. No matter though." He began to hand each of us a coat from his hand. "Feel free to take these dusters. Custom fit." I slipped mine one over me, passing my arms through the sleeves. He was right when this were custom fit; they fit perfectly. The design began from a central black stripe and alternated from it red then black. Several struts were designed onto the lower half of the duster, emulating the metal struts attached the belts of the paladins. The leather draped over the shoulder was colored black and on either side of the material was a red triangle separated by a yellow outline. "Take these as well," he said handing me and the rest a pair of gloves, red with black fingers. "And more specifically for Weiß and You," He handed me a rolled up cloth in the same paladin colors. "Stockings; there is an empty room to your left for you to change." I declined, threw off my shoes and slid the socks over my legs. They stretched up to my thighs, leaving only a small line of skin between them and my shorts. They were simple black stockings with gold and red lace spiraling up the black fabric. Weiss had slipped the stockings on as well, but were hidden by her skirt. "Normally they are very baggy," he said. "They're meant to be worn over paladin armor. But for some reason they were sitting at the front of the armory, strange." He nodded and walked off. I looked at the rest of the team, in the warm coats we looked like paladins, albeit far less bulky; especially with Ruby, having drawn up the hood of her coat. We nodded and dispersed, and I marched down the hall with Blake. I marched out of the Basilica into the cold, Blake gone out of my peripherals. I flipped up the hood of the coat, ready to find the man in the trees.


	5. Two by Two

**Hall of Roses**

I waved back as the rest of the team filtered out of the red hall, leaving me to my portion of the mission. I looked all along the giant hall. Several red and yellow striped banners hung against the wall. I walked amongst the crowd, shifting between each person. They were all focused on their own thing, not even looking at me.

"There has to be at least one person to talk to here," I whispered to myself. As I looked through the crowd, I saw the girl who brought us into the Basilica. Her scrawny body stuck out from the crowd of large men and tall women. I charged through the crowd to see her.

"The fuck mate? What's wrong with you? Bitch," I heard as the bodies darted out of the way. She turned her head as I sped toward her. Her face went from confused to absolute fear. She screamed and pushed her arms forward, and I stopped in my tracks. It was very sudden, I couldn't move, but I didn't feel rooted or bound at all. My arms were outstretched above me, stuck in an awkward diving position. She opened her eyes, and slowly lowered her arms. I slowly regained movement of my limbs, my arms falling to my sides. I locked my eyes with hers.

"Oh my God!" I exclaimed. "That was so cool! Is that your semblance? What is it called?" she stood in silence, her eyes quivering and refusing to look at me. She looked down and mumbled something. "What was that?" I asked her. She stepped back and ran. "Hey wait!" I called out chasing her. She could run fast, but my semblance let me catch up, intercepting her. She jumped back and quickly changed direction. I caught up again, pinning her between the wall and myself. She stood shaking, her eyes twitching around the room. I wondered why she was so afraid. I thought is should break the ice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself," I said. "My name is Ruby, what's yours?" I asked holding out my hand. She looked down and mumbled.

"T…To…Tomoko," she said. Her eyes, hidden behind a curtain of hair, darted toward and away from me.

"Oh yeah, Mikal mentioned that didn't he?" I said rubbing the back of my head. "Sorry, I guess I was a little more focused on the conversation with him." I waited for a response, but she just stood there, jittery. "What can you tell me about the Paladins?" I asked her. She didn't respond. "Is something wrong?" I asked her.

"Could, could you just leave, please?" she squeaked out. "I don't feel comfortable." She walked away, and I briskly followed her.

"What did I say?" I asked her. She picked up her pace but I kept up. She stopped by a small table with several bottles and small loafs of bread set on it.

"I just don't feel comfortable," she squeaked out. I looked at the table, and saw two empty glasses next to a bottle. An idea hatched in my head and I grabbed the two glasses.

"What if we had a drink?" I asked her, handing her a glass. She plucked it from my hand and grabbed a bottle, pouring it into my glass. I smiled and tipped my glass back, the sweet liquid concealing a sour aftertaste. Through the clear glass, I saw the bottle inverted. I set the glass down and saw Tomoko chugging the sweet liquid down her throat. She gasped and slammed the bottle down.

"That's better," she belched out. Her body loosened up and her skin began to warm in color. "Social lubricant," she laughed.

"Seems you can't hold your liquor," I said.

"Yeah," she said. "You asked about the, _hic_, the Paladins right?"

"Why is Mikal so mean?" I asked her.

"Mikal," she said, her face shifting back to her cold demeanor. "Mikal's said that people hurt the ones they love the most."

"He threatened to kill me," I said.

"Are you gay?" she asked.

"Why do you guys keep asking that?" I asked her.

"Mikal, tends to not like gay people," Tomoko said. "I mean he hates other groups more, but he still doesn't like them either."

"Why?" I asked.

"Paladins are kind of different from others," she said. "If you talk to the Priests, they are a lot calmer than Paladins. Paladins have to be more willing to kill in order to keep the law working."

"Are you willing to hurt people?" I asked her.

"I'm a Holy Paladin," she said. "We're healers. But Mikal is Retribution; damage dealers. Nobody wants to hurt people, so they have to stop being people." My eyes widened.

"It's like the war from 80 years ago," I said.

"He is, unsympathetic to those people," he said."

"What do you mean?" I asked her

"If he doesn't know you, he couldn't care less," she said. "But if he does, he would lie down on a sword for you."

"Then why try to befriend me? A member of a group he hates?" I asked her.

"He wants your help," she said. "He wants you to more likely to trust him then anyone else."

"He wants us to fight for him," I said.

"Well," she said. "When I joined he told me that I would have to behave like a Paladin. He made me read from the Bible, and made me train and study with the other Paladins. Eventually, I got used to it and now I can talk to them at least. I even have a few friends here. I guess he wants the same.

"We can already fight," I said. "Why would we have to join the Paladins?"

"It's the only way he'll trust you," she said. "Like I said, he doesn't like your kind. If you joined us, he would be sure you wouldn't try to fight for the enemy."

"That's insane!" I retorted. "Why would he think that?"

"He has trust issues," she said. "so do I. He did say he relates to me. He needs to be sure, he hates betrayal." She slunk her head, deep in thought.

"So that's why people hate the Paladins," I said.

"We're also traditionalists," she said. "Mikal is very, persistent on that."

"So you don't care that I'm gay, or whatever?" I asked her.

"I'd be upset that you have somebody and I don't," she said. "I mean, if I didn't have Bhelen. It's nice to have a boyfriend." She smiled.

"Well that's nice," I said. "At least you got a boyfriend out of the deal."

Suddenly a burst of light erupted from the center of the Basilica, blinding me, and staggering Tomoko. She fell into the table.

"Hey are you okay?" I said kneeling by her. She pulled herself up on my shoulder, leaning on my side. Several men ran past us, B-lining for the Dome, but behind them walked Mikal. Mikal's face was different; instead of cocky aggression, it was unsure and pensive.

"Ruby," he said flatly. I glared at him.

"Let me level with you, it is very difficult for me to be empathetic. I'm not very trusting of new groups, and I am fearful that you would be used as a symbol to pull people away from God." He shuffled about, trying to keep a proud posture.

"Ruby; I don't like the fact you've chosen that as your identity, I hate it. But I don't want that to translate into a hatred of you. I can oppose this lifestyle and still consider you a human being, I want that. It's just that _those_ people think opposing that means I don't think you're human, and that's not the case," he said growing angry. "I don't want to kill you Ruby," he said shifting back to calm. "I want your friendship, I'm just afraid that you will be used against me by those that hate me, and by extension, God."

"Do you mean that?" I asked.

"I truly do," he said. "I desperately try to look past that quality of you and several others. There is no way I cannot see that as a negative, so I choose not to see it. It is just that whenever I have expressed that opinion, I've been met with extreme hatred and opposition. I would rather unite on what qualities we share, rather than divide on differing ideologies. Hypocrisy is quite a bitch. And then when I try to stay in one area, they either call me an isolationist or try to horn in on my territory. It's very hard to live such a life as this." His face was genuine, filled with fear and concern; stark from the face I had seen not minutes before.

"I still haven't heard an apology," I said. He took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry Ruby," he said. "I'm sorry if I offended you. I cannot promise that I will change my perspective, in fact I promise the opposite. But you cannot discount all of my argument just because you dislike a few parts. I used to think like that, but I now try to look for the good in things and people. Like you." he held out his hand. "Do you accept my apology?" I paused for a second and thought. He sounded genuine, and he wasn't wrong. While he did have a bit of a mean perspective, it was very effective. He held his men and women to a high standard, so they have to be good people; even if they may have closed minds. I stretched out my left hand.

"Of course," I said answering with his left. "I guess I could try and see from your perspective. I mean, you're already trying to see from mine." He smiled and gave out a small chuckle. Mikal's men returned, dragging another man in a green robe with them. He was staggering to his feet, but looked disoriented.

"Whoo!" Tomoko yelled, flailing an arm.

"Tomoko, I told you alcohol is a crutch for social interaction," he said.

"No, a crutch helps me walk," she said.

"Funny joke but poor execution," he said. "You should go lie down before you make a fool of yourself." Her face fell a bit. Mikal sighed. "What do you want to do Tomoko?"

"I want to talk to Ruby more," she said.

"You're drunk," he said. "You might reveal more than you should." She pouted. "Tell you what Tomoko, meet up with Ruby outside the Basilica, you can talk to the group." She jumped up and sprinted down and out of the hall. The two of us stared as she ran.

"Back to the previous point," he said. "Empathy is a difficult path Ruby, especially for those tasked with keeping people accountable. I won't be perfect at this; I still have a hard time with it."

"I trust you," I said. "You really aren't a bad guy. Underneath all that armor and sour candy, you're just a sweet gumball."

"Not the analogy I would use, but it works," he said walking away. "Two weeks Ruby; your sister still needs convincing." I smiled and walked down the hall. That man is like me; trying to make the world better. It's going to take everybody to make the world a better place, and he seems willing to work with us for it. I smiled and walked around looking for the rest of my team, happy to have made a new friend.

**White as Snow**

I passed underneath the giant dome overhead, light filtering in; red and gold. The looming hall of blue and white flanked me on either side. Several men and women walked about, holding books and writing on clipboards. Their dress was fairly different from the Paladins. For one, they wore robes rather than plate armor. The Priests draped a pair of jeweled cloth underneath a leather mantle. This was contrasted by the Paladin's shoulder plates decorated with a golden book and knife. The robes were with, patterned with concentric trimming, alternating light blue and yellow. Several of them were at a large bookshelf pulling books from it. A light sound of a chorale hummed in the background, creating a mystical ambience to the locale. I could make out two words: Lux Aurumque.

"Weiß Schnee?" I heard called out. I looked around, the placement of the voice difficult to determine. I looked back to the entrance of the hall, but felt a tapping on my back. I shot my head back to see a fairly tall man in those blue and white robes standing behind me. He stood at least two feet above me. His face was soft, a stark foil to Mikal's sharp aggressive face. He was also quite a bit thinner than him. His hair fell in front of his face, his bangs concealing his right eye.

"Yeah," I said. He smiled and offered his hand.

"My name is Levi," he said, blue eyes flashing in the light. His voice was soft and comforting. "Mikal told me you would be coming to talk." I nodded. "Let's speak in private." He motioned towards the wall opposite the bookshelves. Several alcoves were stationed against the wall. We walked over to the small rooms, slipping into the small space, the door lightly shutting behind us. There was a small table with two chairs, on which rested an electric lamp. There was a window with its blinds drawn. He slid out one of the chairs and motioned me to sit. I obliged and he sat opposite me. The Lamp grew brighter as he touched the base of it.

"Now, what is it you wished to speak about?" he asked.

"I'm not really sure," I said. "I just feel uncomfortable."

"The unfamiliar territory?" he joked. "The constant threat of death, being in the company of those who root out evil and corruption?"

"Excuse me?" I asked him confused.

"Whenever guests come here and Mikal lacks trust towards them," he said. "He tends to, threaten them. Especially, your kind."

"My kind?" I asked him aghast. "That language sounds familiar."

"Like whom?" Levi asked back seriously.

"My father," I sighed. "Mikal talks just like him." My eyes shot over to the blinded window. "Judgmental and quick to condemn. Especially with the White Fang."

"The White Fang?" he asked.

"They are a group of Faunus terrorists," I said. I wondered if he knew. "Do you know what a Faunus is?"

"We call them Beast-men here," he said. "But yes, we have tried to do some research on them. They favor attacking supply routes. They take a page out of the Confederation book."

"I don't really like to talk about my family," I said. "But something has really been upsetting me." He raised an eyebrow. "I'm afraid of what my father will say when I tell him about Ruby and me."

"He wouldn't be very supportive would he?" Levi asked.

"He really doesn't like Faunus," I said. "I have a hard time trusting them too."

"Are we still on the subject of Ruby?" he asked.

"I thought Priests were supposed to be encouraging?" I asked him.

"I apologize, Weiß," he said, likewise pronouncing my name wrong. "It's just from our interpretation of the Bible; we tend to oppose such forms of sexuality."

"Interracial?" I asked shocked.

"Homosexual Weiß," he said. "and bisexual, and trans, pretty much anything not straight." I rolled my eyes at him. He chuckled. From what is seemed he was a significant opposite to Mikal. Mikal was horribly aggressive and threatening. Levi, however, was kinder, softer. He may share the same opinions, but he's wasn't an asshole. His words hurt, but he didn't try to hide behind honeyed words.

"I don't hate my father," I said. "But now I have my freedom. I don't need him to guide me. But, I'm afraid. I'm afraid he'll hate me and Ruby. That he'll discover Blake. I don't want to hurt my team."

"Weiß," Levi said, walking to my side. "If your father truly loves you, as a father should, he will do no such thing. Even if he does not approve of such behavior, he would still love you." I looked into his eyes, locked with mine. "After you gain exposure to a group of people, you tend to be more sympathetic to them. You don't have to support their behavior, but you still need to love them. That's what your father should be doing. There is no way your father would stop loving you."

"I'm scared," I said. "I don't want to hear what he has to say. I just want things to be normal." Tears welled in my eyes, and I threw myself into his arms, bawling into his shoulder.

"If he knows the truth, he can mull it over," Levi said. "He will be able to cope with it sooner, rather than later. He will still love you," he said. "If he is a true father, he will love you unconditionally."

"Am I a racist?" I asked pleadingly, jumping from my seat. "Every time I look at Blake now, I feel upset. I can't be calm around her. My heart beats fast, my vision blurs. I'm so scared."

"Have you considered that," Levi questioned. "You might like Blake the same way you like Ruby?" I pulled away slightly and considered his words.

"I never really thought about it," I said. "She is cute. I mean I'm not against it. She's strong, capable. Maybe, maybe I..." I said to myself even more confused. He placed his hand on my right shoulder.

"You're young Weiß," he said. "It's perfectly fine to be confused. The goal is to not let confusion become our identity." I looked away.

"Maybe I felt aggression toward Blake," I said. "because I couldn't accept the fact that I like her."

"So you mean to tell me that your being upset is over the fact that you have feelings for Blake and Ruby?" he asked. I felt a weight ascend from my shoulders and my stomach unclenched.

"Oh my God, you're right," I said. I saw Levi roll his eyes.

"Well, at least we found the source of you trouble," he said. "Albeit the result not being ideal." I shot him a sour look. "Regardless, I think it would be best to tell your team your feelings about them. It's the mature thing to do."

"Yeah, you're right," I said. "Thank you." he smiled at me and I slipped out of the room and started towards the central area.

"Weiß," I heard him call. I looked back through the doorway as he stepped out of the room.

"I hope that my reactions in our conversation haven't left a poor taste in your mouth," Levi said. "I still have concern for you Weiß, even if we disagree on some points." His voice was sincere. "Remember, you're always welcome at the Basilica," He smiled at me. I smiled and nodded and swiftly ran down the hall to meet up with my team. I stopped underneath the dome and looked up. I thought, Levi was incredibly different from Mikal. Where Mikal desired to fight, Levi wanted to talk, to become close. I dropped my head slightly. Does Levi like me? Do I like Levi? I shook the thought away and walked down the main hall. I guess I can come back and ask a few more questions. Yeah, I'd like that.

**Cat and Mouse**

I waved away at Weiss and Ruby as Yang charged forward.

"Yang, wait!" I yelled after her. She turned around as I grabbed her hand, interlacing my fingers with hers. She pulled me close, resting her forehead against mine. She lifted my chin and placed her lips against mine. Her lips were sweet, contrasting her fiery personality. We pulled apart, resting in the afterglow, until Yang's face became confused.

"Yang, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Your bow's gone," she said. I quickly grabbed at my ears, hoping she would be wrong, but she was right. Where I expected the smooth silk of my bow, I instead felt the soft fur on my ears. I looked around in a panic, desperate for that shield of my Faunus identity.

"You do realize that bow did a poor job of hiding your ears," a voice said from my right. My head shot over to the shadowy wall, the glimmer of the ribbon floating in the air. Slowly, a large figure stepped forward. He wore the same green robes as the others; trimmed with leather and with fur-lined shoulder plates. He tossed the ribbon in his hand, passing it between sharp clawed fingers. He wore a shitfaced sneer, and the face of a wolf. His wore a scraggly beard that connected to untrimmed sideburns. But his eyes, his eyes were the fiercest part of him. They were slanted thin and colored silver. But where Ruby's eyes were peaceful, there was an unsettling fierceness resting in them. "I can smell you cat," he said striding up to us. He leaned in close, his foul breath hanging in my face. "Not to mention that little PDA you just had, poor decisions abound," he threatened. A blast of light enveloped him, pushing him back.

"Thomas, stop!" A female voice yelled. I looked over to the source and a small woman speaking. She wore the same green robe with its hood up, two bumps protruding under the cloth. She thrust her hand forward and blasted him with another light ball. He recoiled and leapt further away. She rushed forward, drawing a gnarled and knotted staff from thin air and took a swipe at him. He leapt backwards, eyes fixed on her. "Leave them alone," she said in a strong and confident voice.

"You are well aware that Mikal does not like them," he sneered.

"Regardless of his opinions, it does not justify attacking them," She said. They stared off and she thrust the staff forward. He let loose a fierce growl and walked away into the Basilica. The woman relaxed and walked over, ready to speak. She shot a look back to Thomas, and quickly lifted a hand. A purple pillar of light blasted through the dome, throwing him to the ground.

"Asshole," she smirked. "My name is Eva."

"My name is Blake," I said. "This is Yang."

"Who the hell was that?" Yang asked.

"That's my boyfriend," she said. "At least, he was."

"Well, I guess I'm just gonna slip out now," Yang said walking forward. "See ya Blake." She ran off leaving me with the woman.

"She's rather charming," Eva giggled. "You two make a good couple."

"You're okay with that?" I said confused. She smiled.

"I know, Paladin whose okay with Gay people," she laughed. "Mikal doesn't reflect everybody's opinion. I guess that's why I'm in the Creation Paladins."

"You're the Faunus I saw earlier," I said. She looked confused.

"Faunus?" she asked confused. Her face quickly turned into to a smile. "Oh, I'm sorry; we have a different name for them. We call them beast-men." My ears twitched, reminding me of my missing ribbon. I looked behind me; sure that Thomas still had it. I looked back, and saw the ribbon hanging from Eva's hand.

"Thanks," I said grabbing it. I began to wrap it around my ears, but Eva spoke up.

"Don't worry, you're safe here," she said, pulling down her hood. She revealed a pair of cat ears, not unlike mine, covered in beautiful chestnut hair. I dropped my arms, my ribbon hanging down. Her lower robes jostled and a large tail swung free. She was more animal then I thought.

"So what's a Creation Paladin?" I asked her. "You look a lot different from the others." She smiled.

"A Creation Paladin is essentially a Druid," she said. "Mikal wanted to command the powers of nature without resorting to a Pagan path. So he justified commanding nature as commanding God's Creation, ergo, Creation Paladin."

"So the Creation Paladins are all Faunus?" I asked.

"Not really," she said. "You see, when we began to use the Nature magic, we began to exhibit, animalistic traits. It's called the Kekomimi curse. In fact, Tom is the only one who is legitimately a beast-man."

"So what is he then?" I asked.

"He's a worgen," she said. I gave her a perplexed look. "You know, werewolf." She looked down and let out a sigh. "He was such a charming guy too."

"What happened?" I asked. She stood silent, looking away. "Oh, I'm sorry, personal question."

"No, its fine," she said. "I'm just thinking. He was sweet at the beginning. But he got very aggressive. Like what just happened with you. I used to love him, but he was just horribly aggressive. I broke up with him."

"Didn't take it too well I assume?" I asked.

"I expected retaliation," she said. "But he refused to lay a hand on me; even after I gave him permission to attack. He just couldn't do it. And that's the worst part; he still loves me, even though I don't love him. I even attack him, and he doesn't respond, just takes it."

"That sounds horrible," I said.

"It tears my heart up," she said looking back over. A smile slowly crept on her face. "But I guess the two of you are a lot better."

"Well, yeah," I said blushing. "I mean she's a little energetic."

"I would love to get to know her too," she said. "She seems like a sweet girl."

"After Mikal's little speech I didn't think anybody here would be this open minded," I said.

"Well, that's why I'm in the Creation Paladins," she said.

"The Creation Paladins are for outcasts?" I asked her.

"It wasn't always like that," she said. "at the beginning several people wanted to try it out. And then came the Kekomimi curse. Still, we worked together. Then, a few Paladins began to disagree with Mikal. Naturally he didn't want his own army to have dissenters, so he forced them away from the immediate army. So went the status, the pay, but worst of all, the respect."

"So the Creation Paladins are second class," I said.

"Well not really," she said. "It's weird, we get about the same money, many of us prefer the less glamorous life, but the big thing is how quick Mikal was to get rid of us. There are a few Creation Paladins that are devoutly loyal to him, mostly to keep us in check I'm sure."

"So we aren't that different," I said. She laughed loudly.

"I guess you're right," she said. "I feel betrayed, I don't hate being a Druid, in all honesty that's what I am, not some fancy Paladin variant, just a Druid, just a girl that challenged the standard." She stared into the Basilica, and I looked back as well. Tom was being pulled up by several Paladins, pulling him over to Paladin hall.

"Does Mikal trust him?" I asked.

"It's more like the Paladins keep him in check," she said. I thought about the spell that had incapacitated him.

"So what exactly can Druids do?" I asked. She smiled.

"I am a Balance Druid," she said. "Which means I focus on spell casting. What you saw was a demonstration of the two powers I use. Solar and Lunar based spells, ergo Balance."

"And what about Thomas?" I asked.

"He is a Feral Druid," she said. "Very appropriate considering his nature. Feral Druids take the form of a fierce feline and inflict damage with their claws. They are even capable of using stealth."

"So that explains how he stole my ribbon," I said.

"And more than that, Druids can shapeshift based on their specialization," she continued. "Feral uses Cats, Balance uses Moonkin or Owlkin."

"What's an Owlkin?" I asked.

"Sorry, essentially they're like a Humanoid Owl," she explained. "Restoration Druids take the form of a healing Tree, and Guardians, Guardians take the form of a Bear."

"What makes that special?" I asked.

"There are very few Guardians out there," she said. "In fact, we only have one ourselves. He's a giant man too."

"There are a lot of us here then," I said. She looked at me.

"Beast-men?" she asked. I nodded. "Of course, Mikal made an effort to represent us quite a bit. It really helped that people were kind of into that sort of thing."

"What do you mean into that?" I asked.

"You know what I mean," she said slyly. "Well, more like you or me," she said. "Mikal is rather, ambivalent; hell he's actually extremely critical of the other half."  
"Other half?" I asked.

"Where Mikal comes from, there are no Faunus or Beast-men, just humans," she explained. "Some people there however, have an attraction to animalistic traits applied to Humans. However there are two styles to it. There is our appearance, Human with minor animal traits, then there are anthropomorphic animals. Dear God."

"Why does he hate them?" I asked.

"Rather open, to less than, normal, sexual activity," she said. "I'd rather not talk about it, it's a silly topic."

"Okay," I said. Suddenly, somebody ran between us, nearly throwing us to the ground. "What was that?" I asked.

"Tomoko's drunk again," she said. "I should take care of this. It was good talking to you."

"Yeah, I enjoyed it," I said. "Maybe, we can talk again later?"

"I'm always here," she said walking over to the entrance.

"Blake!" I heard screamed from behind me. I looked back to see Weiss running toward me. "You're by yourself, good."

"And why is that important?" I asked.

"There is something," she huffed, out of breath. "Something important I have to tell you."

"What is it?" I asked. She stood up, and brushed her dress up. She took a deep breath and spoke.

"Blake, I think I might, like you," she said. I paused.

"Like, you like Neptune?" I asked simply.

"That's it?" she asked confused. "You're not going to freak out or be shocked or anything?"

"Well, I am a little surprised, but there is the fact that Yang and I are together," I said. "And to be honest Weiss, I think that you're not that secure in many of your intimate relationships."

"What!" she asked exasperated.

"No offense Weiss, but first you like Neptune, and then you switch to Ruby, and now you say you like me?" I asked her. "Are you serious about any of these or do you just want a fling? Cause I'm not going to do that!" I said defiantly. I expected Weiss to shout back, but she did something rather out of character for her. She began to cry. She hung her head down and began to weep.

"Damn it," she cried. "God fucking damnit why does this always happen?"

"Weiss, are you okay?" I asked.

"Of course I'm fucking not," she said. "I have absolutely no idea what to think. I thought I liked Neptune, and you know what, I think I still do. Then Ruby and I have drunk sex and we're together, and then I can't get you out of my head at all," she wept. "Why can't I think straight?!" she cried. "What's wrong with me?" she fell to her knees, trapped by tears. I walked over to her and picked her up, pulling her into a close hug.

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with you Weiss," I said sincerely. "Look, I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean to be so hostile." She looked up at me, eyes bloodshot. "It's okay to be confused. It's normal, but you are with Ruby right now, and you should focus on that relationship, be a better girlfriend for her." She pulled away from me, wiping away her tears.

"Then how do you feel about me then?" she asked.

"Not that way Weiss," I said. "But do you really think that what you feel for me is real?"

"I'm not sure," she said. I sighed and stepped forward. I rested my hand on her chin, raising her head.

"This is the only way I know how," I said locking my lips with hers. It was a strange feeling. With Yang it felt incredible, a spark of energy surging through me, as if we were embraced in bed. But there was nothing with Weiss, just to mounds of flesh writhing over each other. I broke the kiss and stepped back. "Well?"

"Nothing," she said, disappointed.

"Then there's you answer," I said.

"Then why did it feel like I liked you?" she asked.

"Maybe you projected your feelings for Ruby onto me," I said. "Or for Neptune onto her. I know I trust my feelings in Yang."

"I think I do like Neptune still," she said, a smile coming to her face. "But at least I know how I feel about you."

"At least there's that," I said. She lunged forward, grasping me by the waist.

"Thank you Blake," she said.

"Weiss!" I heard called. Suddenly, a flash of red rose petals fluttered by, ending with Ruby latching herself onto Weiss. Weiss looked deeply at Ruby's smiling face and swiftly placed her lips on hers. I smiled, seeing the amount of joy that Weiss could feel with Ruby. They broke the kiss, and I saw Weiss smile contently as she laid her head on Ruby's shoulder. "Well, you're looking better," Ruby said. Weiss gave a light laugh and stepped back from Ruby, grasping her hand. "So where's Yang?" Ruby asked me.

"She went off ahead," I said. "She's outside somewhere."

"She would go after her?" Weiss asked. Ruby smiled and ran off to the gate, Weiss straggling behind. I sighed and followed after them, ready to meet back up with my girlfriend.

**Gold Lock**

I swiftly walked over to the gate of the Basilica, the bright white light blinding me. The snowfall had picked up, creating a white screen. I reached into my inner coat pocket, pulling out my shades. I slipped them on, and the white screen was dulled. I stepped out into the last warmth of the Basilica, the sand circle. The sand was untouched by the snow, which piled up against an invisible barrier. I stepped out of the warmth and into the storm. The wind beat horribly against me, the coat flailing about. Normally the wind would cut against my skin, but a warmth hung about me. I was sure my semblance was keeping me warm, but I looked down, the snow around my legs melting slowly around me. I ignored it and trudged through the bitter melting snow, until I saw a red flag, beating in the wind. I looked ahead, and saw a line of red flags leading up to a pale blue silhouette. I charged forward through the snow, leaping from flag to flag. Each bound linked to the next, my heart racing towards my goal. The wind rushed past me, my hair flowing with it. As I leapt, my heat escaped me, and I began to tense up. The darkness began to creep out as I leapt about. I had no idea what time it was but I didn't care. I breathed deep and pushed on forward making the final leap. The last flag stuck in the ground resting before a medium sized building. A sign hung on it, the words BeastMaster's Pub carved into it in pristine calligraphy. I stepped up to the door and entered the building, escaping the biting wind. I removed my glasses, hanging them from my collar. The doorway opened up into a small hallway. I continued down the simple corridor into a large common area, filled with chairs and tables, but more importantly, a roaring fireplace. I walked over to the hearth and warmed my hands.

"You came through the storm?" I heard. I looked over to my right. Against the wall was a well-stocked bar at which stood a large man wiping down the counter. "You're very tough, even for a Paladin." He thought I was a Paladin? I looked down at my outfit. I did look like a Paladin in this getup. It was incredibly gaudy, but to someone who had no idea who I was, I might as well be a Paladin. "I bet you're pretty thirsty," he said. "How 'bout a drink? On the house." I walked over to bar, accepting his invitation. Paladins get free drinks; now that is a perk.

"You have anything that can warm me up?" I asked. He smiled and pulled a bottle from the shelves and set it on the bar. He reached underneath and pulled out a small shot glass. The bottle contained a yellow liquid and the image of a fire breathing dragon dominated the label. He popped open the bottle and filled the small glass with the golden liquid. I grasped the small glass, staring at the yellow liquid. I slammed the liquid back, and the taste of burning cinnamon filled my mouth. No doubt it warmed me up, but I suffered for it.

"Now that is some literal firewater," he said. I leaned on the bar, the heat getting the better of me.

"That," I heaved out. "That is too hot."

"Something sweet instead then?" he said. I glared at him. He shrugged it off and pulled up a stacked pair of shiny metal glasses.

"Excuse me," I heard behind me. I looked over my shoulder. I saw a tall lank man in a green hood, with a scraggly beard, and the string of a bow drawn across his torso.

"You," I said. "You're the man from before."

"Of course," he said. "Come sit with me. He'll be finished with your drink." He walked over to a table in the corner close to the fireplace. I followed him over and took a seat with him. He pulled out an old pipe from under his cloak and lit its contents with a small match. As he smoked, I heard footsteps coming from behind me. In my peripheral's I saw the bartender carrying a tall glass of red liquid and setting it on the table. He nodded and returned to the bar. I took a quick sip of the liquid, and sighed relief as the sweet fruit soothed my burnt palate.

"That's better," I said. "Tastes a little weak though." I looked at the glass, it was filled half way with ice.

"You would need to specify no ice," the hooded man said. "If it's served in a highball, they put ice in it."

"Who are you?" I asked him. He took a long pull on his pipe, smoke billowing out of his nostrils.

"My name is Sylvanus," he said. "I am a Ranger." I looked closely at him. Through his cloak I could see a small opening where a few feathers stuck out, and slung against his body was the string from a bow.

"You're an archer then?" I asked.

"Not quite," he said. "I tend to be an outdoorsman, a scout if you will, trained in investigating the clues found in nature."

"Why did you want to talk to me?"

"There is something happening Yang," he said.

"How did you know my name?" I replied.

"Do you think it matters at this point?" he said. "The Paladin's advance into your world has consequences far beyond what their leader expects."

"How do you know?" I asked him.

"Mikal was not the only one to enter Remnant," he said. "I followed behind, tailing him and his Paladins. Something felt wrong, wherever he went, an uneasiness precluded, as if something was going to happen. Something, dark, foul," He pulled a deep breath off of his pipe. "Grim." Smoke billowed out of his mouth, a grey cloud hanging about.

"Are you saying the Paladins are involved with the Grimm?" I asked.

"I am told, negative emotions draw them," he said. "The Paladins are a, good source, for bad mindsets."

"They've already set a base at Beacon," I said. "What's going to happen?"

"The city is walled off," he said. "It seems unlikely that Grimm will get in, especially with what Mikal promises."

"Grimm hunting," I said.

"Yes," he said. "The Paladin presence will do little to reduce Grimm attacks, in fact, they will be only exacerbated, and even if the Paladins fight them, they will only break even."

"Then they have to leave," I said.

"That isn't possible," he said. "Mikal is proud, and he will not give up his pursuits in Remnant. He has weighed the pros and cons, and finds the cost to be worth it."

"What are we supposed to do then?" I asked him.  
"Bide your time," he said. "Bolster your defenses, gain their trust. It is the only way to survive them."

"The Grimm?" I asked.

"Mikal," he said. "I have spent much time studying him, discovering motivation. He will be willing to work with people if they share a common goal."

"Not even in two weeks would we share a common goal," I said. His lips moved slightly, but I could not read them. I looked back to the fire, the crackling music of the burning wood echoing in the room. "I feel on edge around him. He threatened Ruby, I just can't trust him."

"Let me assure you," the ranger said. "The people he cares for, he cares for deeply. He would fall on his own sword for his men; for the people he loves."

"Why do I feel then that I'm on the opposite side of that sword?" I asked him. Suddenly, a clatter of noise erupted from the doorway. My eyes shot over to the entrance, and the rest of the team burst through.

"Yang!" Ruby yelled jumping on my shoulders. I looked back at the hooded man, only to find smoke hanging in his place.

"Where'd he go?" I whispered under my breath.

"I can't believe you braved the storm Yang," Blake said as Ruby stood back up.

"I can't believe _you _made it through the storm," the barkeep shouted from behind. "You Paladin bitches are tough."

"But we're not…" Ruby began to say before I quickly covered her mouth.

"Yeah, I got a little too excited about that," I said with a shitfaced grin. "I'm glad my teammates came all this way to find me though." The bartender raised an eyebrow.

"Well, no matter," he said. "There is no way you're going out in the storm." I looked out the window. By this point it was solid dark with a constant flow and flurry of white. How could I have lost track of time?

"Feel free to take a room upstairs, no charge," the bartender said. Ruby and Weiss walked over to the stairway. "Although, there are only two beds." Ruby smiled.

"That won't be a problem," she said enthusiastically. They strode up the steps hurriedly.

"I'll see you upstairs Yang," Blake said ascending the stairs. She gave me a wink and disappeared up the steps. That left me and the bartender.

"Where did he go?" I asked him.

"Well thank you," I said walking over to the steps.

"You can leave to dusters in the closet," he said coldly. "There won't be any snow tomorrow. I'm sure your brothers will take care of them."

"Thank you," I said ascending the stairs. His voice was cold, hostile; eerily similar. I brushed it off and walked into the room. Ruby and Weiss were already in bed, their coats on the ground and Ruby nuzzling into Weiss. Blake sat on the other bed, legs crossed and reading one of her smut books. I slipped off my coat, letting it heap into the ground. I kicked off my boots, joining Blake on the bed.

"Watcha Reading?" I asked her. She smiled.

"Nothing special really," she said setting the book down. "Unlike you." she nuzzled into my neck, her ears lightly brushing against my skin.

"Where's the ribbon?" I asked her.

"I don't need it," she said. "Not here at least. Plenty of people on my side. It feels great to not have to hide." I smiled and began to rub her ears.

"Well, they are cute," I said. She quietly exhaled and moaned, almost purring. I lay back on the bed, Blake curling up on my side, her arm wrapped around my stomach. I rested my hand on her hip, cuddling her close. Soon she fell asleep, her breath steady and quiet. That's normally what happened with us: I would find Blake in bed reading, waiting for me to come in. I would lie down and she would curl up with me, just like a cat. A lot of the time we would start having sex, but that was rare, considering we never got to be in a bed by ourselves. So I just relaxed to Blake's breath.

"Yang?' Blake asked quietly.

"Yeah?" I responded.

"I love you," she said softly.

"I love you too," I said back, placing a kiss on her head.

"I'm so glad everybody's happy," she said. "also, could you move your hand?"  
"Why?" I asked.

"Cause it's not on my butt," she said smiling.

"Dirty girl," I responded. Blake dozed off, her breath slowing down. I looked at the other bed, Ruby and Weiss sound asleep. I took a deep breath, letting my mind drift off. I nuzzled my chin into Blake's, as I had done so many times before, and for the first time today, I felt calm and at peace, and I was able to finally join Blake in a comforting embrace. And slowly, my mind drifted off and away.


End file.
